


Home

by God_of_Insanity, obsidians



Series: Dreams of Beyond [2]
Category: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst and Humor, Angst with a Happy Ending, Background Het, Bottom Sephiroth, Children, Deal with it!, Depressed/Grieving Sephiroth, Eventually Supportive Yuffie, F/M, Forgiveness, Four Part Story, Friends to Lovers, Het and Slash, It's Mostly Yaoi/Slash I Promise, M/M, Marriage, Matured Zack, Minor Original Character(s), Moving On, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Power Bottom Sephiroth, Protective Vincent Valentine, Protective Zack Fair, Revived Sephiroth, Same-Sex Marriage, Self-Acceptance, Self-Harm, Self-Hatred, Sequel, Sexual Tension, Slight Het Sex, Supportive Vincent Valentine, Supportive Zack Fair, Surrogate, Tags May Change, That's right Zack SURVIVED, This story made me love Zack more, This story may make you Cry & Laugh, Top Vincent Valentine, Vincent & Zack Are Estranged from their friends, Vincent Takes A LOT of Cold Showers, Vincent is a sweet man, Yaoi, Zack is still a lovable clown tho, f/m - Freeform, m/m - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-27
Updated: 2017-01-31
Packaged: 2018-09-20 05:31:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 32,643
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9477698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/God_of_Insanity/pseuds/God_of_Insanity, https://archiveofourown.org/users/obsidians/pseuds/obsidians
Summary: Sequel to Away. Sephiroth is alive and mostly sane, struggling with his loss and self-hatred. With the help of some friends and a new love, Sephiroth learns to move on and to finally accept happiness into his life.





	1. Part I

**Author's Note:**

> Here's the sequel to Away, as promised. It was so much fun writing with obsidians in Away, and even more fun writing Home. We're already working on a third project and I foresee many more to come. Obsidians and I hope you enjoy Home, and as always, we appreciate you for reading, giving kudos, and/or feedback.

_Six months_. It had been roughly six months since Sephiroth had traveled to Banora to visit Angeal’s grave. He’d only had around six months to grieve for a man that’d been dead for several years already. To think that instead of properly mourning Angeal, he’d been a deranged, murderous lunatic for years. A monster. The very thing he had seen in his nightmares countless nights and had ultimately changed into at the end despite Angeal’s assurances that he was not a monster. It wasn’t Angeal’s fault that he became the very thing he feared he’d become. Despite Vincent’s assurances that Sephiroth wasn’t to blame for his insanity, he couldn’t help feeling like everything had been his fault regardless. After all, the rest of the world seemed to view Sephiroth just as he viewed himself: a despicable monster.

He couldn’t agree more with them on that. If he was them, he wouldn’t trust him and would probably want him dead, too. Sometimes he spent hours wondering _why_ Vincent cared so much, why he even bothered. Each time he spent brooding over this, he always reached the same conclusion that the only reason Vincent even bothered with him was out of sheer guilt, but mostly because the gunman had loved Sephiroth’s real mother, Lucrecia. Sometimes he toyed with the idea of sparing Vincent the hassle of looking after him by just leaving. Each time, he remembered that he had absolutely no where to go and a part of himself was too selfish to leave this isolated sanctuary. He didn’t deserve everything Vincent provided and did for him, he knew that, yet he couldn’t, no, he _wouldn’t_ stop himself from consuming it like a hungry beast.

Sitting by the large tinted window in his bedroom, Sephiroth watched a deer grazing fifteen meters away in the meadow near the woods. Since Vincent lived on his own fenced in, private property, there were rarely ever any people seen anywhere near his townhouse. It would seem that Vincent liked his privacy as much as Sephiroth did without the distraction of people around. He didn’t really miss being around people and even if he did, he wouldn’t be able to walk amongst them without issues. Many still remembered what he had done and due to his unique looks, most would surely recognize him in an instant. He knew that he could always dye and cut his hair and wear contacts, yet he didn’t want to change a thing because Angeal had found him attractive just the way he was. Despite what many might believe, he was not exactly vain concerning his own looks. If anything, he had always believed himself to be rather weird looking, especially his eyes, and always did his best to avoid mirrors whenever possible. The only reason he had kept his hair long was so that some part of him was free and untamed. Now he kept it long _and_ braided in a single braid so that he didn’t have to groom himself so often.

Angeal was dead and probably couldn’t even see him now, yet despite that, Sephiroth felt compelled to remain as much like his old self as possible. While it was true that he had changed quite a bit since his downfall and after, he still desperately wanted some things to stay the same. All for a dead man that he couldn’t see or touch anymore.

Turning his back to the window, he slid off the plush seated windowsill and then shut the blackout drapes to shroud the room in a comforting blanket of utter darkness. Crawling into his bed, he slid under the covers and adjusted his position so that his back was to the door. In the past, he had always slept facing the door in case of attackers; however, now he didn’t particularly care if someone snuck in and shot him.

Vincent had been gone since the night before due to an urgent mission issued by Reeve that was of the upmost importance. He knew that the ex-Turk rarely worked for the WRO unless they absolutely needed him. In the past six months, the crimson-eyed gunman had only taken a handful of missions. The other times he was absent, he was out running essential errands that required him to physical leave the house such as shopping, for example. Vincent could always just order food and other supplies to be delivered to the house, but had explained to Sephiroth that very few knew where he lived and he wanted to keep it that way. The ex-General had easily read in-between the lines that Vincent wanted to keep Sephiroth safe and secret from the rest of the world. He wasn’t certain how he should feel about that since every time Vincent protected him, tried keeping him safe and well, it reminded him so much of Angeal that it made his chest ache. He tried not to compare the two men, but in his head, he couldn’t help listing their similarities and differences. Why he did it, he didn’t know. Perhaps it was for lack of anything better to do or maybe it was the fact that they seemed to be the only ones that had ever truly cared about him and shown him genuine understanding and kindness. Whatever the true reason, he felt both confused and agonized by it.

Grabbing one of his pillows, he clung to it and out of habit, he buried his face in it, inhaling deeply. He almost expected to smell Angeal’s unique scent and when all he smelt was the faint clinging scent of Vincent’s black chamomile scented softener, his body shuddered until he began sobbing uncontrollably. Hot liquid squeezed out from behind his tightly shut eyes until he couldn’t spare another tear. Exhausted and wracked with grief, he remained in his bed for what felt like hours, or days. Sleep itself was something fleeting and when he did manage to sleep, it was disturbed by horrifying nightmares, or more like, past visions of him killing everyone in his path, including an innocent little praying girl. Sometimes when he awoke, he could still smell the blood and hear the screams ringing in his ears. What was worse still was the dreams of Angeal. Sometimes he saw him dying alone and no matter how fast Sephiroth flew, he never reached him in time to save him. Sometimes he merely saw past memories of their short time spent together, which felt blissful until he woke up only to realize once more that Angeal wasn’t here with him…he was **dead**. And all over again, he grieved. Little time was spent sleeping since he didn’t want to dream and was often too depressed to do more than just stare vacantly at animals until he couldn’t stand seeing such life when all he seemed to see in his head was bitter death and despair.

Suddenly, rage struck him, causing him to shove himself up and tumble out of the bed gracelessly onto the ground in a tangle of sheets. Grunting, he sat up and scrubbed away the salty discharge from his face until his pale skin was a blotchy, reddened mess. He was fucking pathetic and he knew it.

Rising shakily to his feet, his exhausted body jerked a bit from disuse and lack of nourishment. It’d probably been a good few days or so since he’d last eaten. The only times he actually ate anything, which wasn’t much anyway, was whenever Vincent was around. The man never forced him to eat anything, but cooked for him regardless and patiently sat with him until he ended up eating at least a small portion of his meal. He never ate because he was hungry; he ate because he felt guilty allowing Vincent’s food and effort to go to waste.

His past self would have scoffed at the sight of him. A good portion of his muscle mass was gone due to his lack of nourishment and exercise. The first few months, he had forced himself to eat, shower, and exercise regularly. He even had trained himself outside, fighting imaginary opponents until Vincent called him inside for dinner. It had been a good distraction until one day, the ex-Turk was called to duty, and Sephiroth was alone again. He was reminded all over again how it felt when Angeal and Genesis had suddenly deserted him, leaving him behind in that lonely, cold house. Each time Vincent left, Sephiroth’s resolve to stay fit and take care of himself waned until it got to the point he rarely ever left his room. Why the other man put up with him, he didn’t know. He didn’t deserve to live here, to be treated with such kindness and hospitality, but he desperately longed for it all the same. Just like with Angeal. No matter how worthless and undeserving Sephiroth felt, he couldn’t bring himself to leave, to reject what was freely given to him.

As if on auto pilot, his bare feet slowly lugged the rest of him out of his room and down the dark, silent hallway to the other bedroom that wasn’t too far away from his own. It was Vincent’s bedroom, a room he had seen probably once when the man had given him a tour of the place. Before now, he had never thought to set foot in the room out of respect for the man’s space and privacy. Now…he wasn’t exactly sure what he was doing until he found himself curling up under the ex-Turk’s sheets with his arms wrapped around Vincent’s pillow. The man’s alluring scent cloaked him in a haze of comfort as he burrowed deeper under the covers, pressing his face into the pillow and inhaling deeply. He could smell the lightly fragrant shampoo Vincent usually used and the unique smell that he could only describe as _Vincent_. The scent filled his nostrils, effectively soothing his weary, distraught mind and body. It wasn’t Angeal’s scent, but he found it comforting nevertheless. Within minutes, the soothing warmth spread throughout every part of his body until his eyelashes kissed his cheeks and his breath evened out until a blissfully dreamless sleep claimed him.

Hours later, Vincent stepped through the threshold of his townhouse, smelling of blood and gunpowder. Sighing under his breath, he tossed his red coat over a chair the moment he stepped inside the house. As he tugged the glove from his human hand off, he noticed how dark the house looked and how deathly silent it was. Normally by now, Sephiroth would have turned a few lights on for him, but not today, it seemed. Shaking his head, he turned on a few lights before he proceeded to search for the silver-haired man.

“Sephiroth?” He called out and waited for a response. Receiving none, he knocked politely on the man’s door and when there was no answer, he inquired, “Sephiroth? Are you okay?” And when he received no answer, he warned, “All right…I’m coming in…”

Slowly opening the door, the gunman glanced around the room and was surprised to find no trace of Sephiroth save for the blankets and sheets rumpled and twisted together on the ground. Growing increasingly alarmed, he turned away and began hastily searching the rest of the house. His concern mounted more and more every time he walked into a room devoid of the ex-General. Where could Sephiroth be? Did he _leave_ …? Or did something happen? Did someone come here and…? Feeling distressed at the thought, Vincent barged into his own room to grab one of his spare coats. He wasn’t about to wear his old, bloody one when he searched for the missing—

“ _Mmm_ …” sighed Sephiroth, rolling over in Vincent’s big, spacious bed with said man’s pillow sandwiched between his arms and body with half of his face buried in it. The part of his face that was visible was serene and relaxed, making him resemble that of a slumbering angel.

To say Vincent was shocked by this unexpected, beautiful sight was an understatement. Whatever worry that had thundered inside of him quickly melted away until he felt almost as calm as the sleeping man before him. As if of their own accord, his legs took him across the room until he found himself perched on the edge of his own bed. He reached out slowly, but hesitated when Sephiroth stirred slightly in his sleep. Dropping his hand to the bed, he couldn’t help lingering in the thrall the silver-haired male unwittingly had him in. The fact that Sephiroth was in _his_ bed, coupled by the mesmerizing sight of said man, caused an unwelcome heat to stir in the pit of his belly until it slowly spread throughout his body, warming every part of him, including his fingers and toes, which usually always felt cold to him.  The sight of the man, unusually devoid of any pain and sorrow, caused him to temporarily forget himself and forget that Sephiroth was a vulnerable man who currently mourned the loss of his deceased lover. Extending his arm out again, he cupped the side of Sephiroth’s exposed, smooth face in his hand and silently marveled at just how good it felt to touch him. Still asleep, the younger male pressed his face into that hand before the hand jerked away from him as if burned by fire. Malachite colored eyes blinked open, confused and disorientated at first before spotting the shocked-looking gunman.

“Vincent? Is that you?” Asked Sephiroth, his voice slurred by traces of a recent deep sleep. Stretching his limbs, he slowly sat up as he regarded the raven-haired man, piqued by the fact that Vincent had entered his bedroom, which was a rare occurrence for the gunman. This didn’t bother him, per se, since he trusted him and knew the slightly shorter male only entered his room when he was concerned about him. Because the room was dark and all his attention was focused on Vincent, he didn’t seem to realize just yet that he wasn’t in his own bedroom, let alone in his own bed.

"Yes, I'm home. Are you comfortable?" Vincent deadpanned.

"Yes, I was just taking a nap, I haven’t been sleeping well." Sephiroth explained and then looked around his room and realized it _wasn't_ his room and turned a deep, painful red color that even Vincent could see in the dimly lit room. He gave Vincent such a look of acute embarrassment that it was like the gunman had caught him pleasuring himself. "I'm sorry, sometimes if I can't sleep, someone's scent that I'm...used to helps lull me to sleep. I didn't mean to intrude," he explained in a small voice as if afraid that Vincent would finally eject him from his place at this confession.

Vincent looked him over and tried not to visibly frown at how he had been neglecting himself, his hair in its tight braid had sections protruding from it and looked slightly greasy at the roots. Although he didn't stink, there was a musty odor about Sephiroth that indicated he had neither bathed nor changed his bed clothes in the time Vincent had been gone. How much weight he had lost disturbed Vincent more than he let on.

"It's okay, I understand completely. I know that you suffer from bad dreams and insomnia over what you perceive to be your past wrongs. I'm glad my scent helps you sleep when I have to leave you. I do hate to leave you alone without companionship. Feel free to sleep in my bed whenever...I'm not here," he said and blushed almost as deeply as Sephiroth had at his close slipup. He had almost suggested that Sephiroth was welcome to sleep with him! Sephiroth, who as far as Vincent was concerned, was a widower, even if Sephiroth felt himself unworthy to claim that title.

Vincent, himself could see in Sephiroth what Angeal had seen in him that was worth loving, to the point he longed to legally claim him before the world as his spouse. Sephiroth, for how powerful he was, was emotionally stunted and had a lot of love to give, but didn't know how to approach someone amorously. Vincent was sure when he gave his love to someone, he pledged his love forever. This made Vincent rather envious of the man that Angeal had been, but at the same time was glad that Sephiroth had had that with someone.

"Would taking that pillow to your bed help you sleep?" Asked Vincent, indicating the pillow he still held.

"I-I can't ask you for more. You have given me so much." Sephiroth said and had to look down when his vision blurred, but refused to relinquish his grip on the pillow.

"It's just a pillow. Take it." Vincent insisted and then realized that his human hand was stroking the crown of Sephiroth's head and snatched it away, but not before Sephiroth inclined his head into the warm palm of his hand, grateful for the small comfort being offered. Comfort that he felt he did not deserve, yet his touch deprived body greedily drank it in. He longed to throw him arms around Vincent and inhale the intoxicating scent of him from the source while clinging to him like a child.

Instead, he stood up and realized what a sorry sight he presented. "I think I am in need of a shower. You probably need one, too, and to rest after your mission, allow me to vacate your bed. I shall take care of dinner tonight while you nap. I shall borrow this pillow for now, but won't keep it," he reasonably said and hugged it to him like it was precious and left.

Vincent didn't know what to do. Sephiroth was hurting, his grief was still so fresh and it would take a long time for him to emotionally heal. He was neglecting himself and probably hadn't eaten for days. His muscle bulk had been reduced by half and he just looked unwell, his eyelids constantly swollen from crying and his normally brightly glowing eyes looked dim and hollow. Even his pale skin had taken on a grey cast from lack of sleep.

Sephiroth needed more companionship then Vincent could provide him, Vincent realized. He needed someone who could spar with him on his level with a sword. Someone who could encourage him to eat properly to regain his muscle mass through their training together. Someone who could stay with him and make sure he continued his exercise regime when Vincent couldn't be there. Perhaps someone that had been in the SOLDIER program and understood what Sephiroth had lived through? But who? The only one he could think of was Cloud and that certainly wouldn't work...

Across town, a Mako blue glowing eye opened in the darkness of his bedroom and wondered why it felt like someone had been thinking of him. His other eye opened to split the dark; those eyes were the exact color of the sea, he liked to tell women. The bedroom he was in wasn't the cleanest one in existence, soiled clothes lay in heaps on the floor. Along with the laundry basket containing clean ones, he fished out of it as needed, until it was empty and it was time to wash clothes again. The only thing clean in the room was the WRO red and tan uniform that hung neatly on the door to be put on in the morning with the badge name that read "Sergeant Zackary Fair" on it.

The only decorations on the walls were some old photos of his younger self with three other men: a large muscular brunette, an ethereally beautiful man who looked almost unworldly with long silver hair and green slit pupil eyes, and a red-haired pretty boy with a regal posture and  an arrogant, smug smile. All four wore what appeared to be different versions of the same uniform, with marked differences. There were also several photos of himself with a beautiful girl with an angelic face, gentle eyes and a sweet smile. Or with her by herself. These were of his first deceased love.

Needing to void his bladder, Zack got up.

He studied himself in the mirror; the circumstances that led up to his presence were actually quite dull but he was here and happy for it. He had grown and filled out more than he had as a youth. He had much more body mass now in his maturity. He was no Angeal Hewley, but he was sure Angeal would have approved of how much he had grown. His voice was of a deeper timbre and his "puppyish" ways had somewhat diminished, but would always be a part of him, that part women often found irresistible.

He had no problem attracting women as his ex-wife would attest to. Cynthia, who used to be known as Cissnei when she had been a TURK. She had left her post when she was disillusioned by Shinra, but had monitored Zack's progress after his "accident."

She had taken him into her home when he was released from the hospital and they had grown even closer and eventually decided to marry. It hadn't worked out, they had grown apart, but were still friends. Their parting had been amicable.

Zack padded to the kitchen to drink some orange juice right from the carton. He thought he should clean his kitchen as he regarded the discarded Wutaian food containers on the counter; they had been there for a couple of days.

He again wondered where Sephiroth was. For all that Sephiroth had done or had done to him via Jenova, Sephiroth had been a comrade and friend of Zack's and he still worried about him.

You could have knocked Zack over with a feather to find out the ex-General had been found alive. He had tried to get in touch with him, even tried to write him letters in prison but was not allowed contact with him, few were. His letters had been returned unopened and it seemed Sephiroth was no longer in the prison, so Zack had deduced he must have been released on bail or into someone's custody.

Then he seemed to vanish after the positive outcome of his trial. Was he in the witness protection program? No, he was too distinctive to blend into a new role in life. Into whose care would he have been released to?

As far as Zack knew, his parents were both dead, along with Zack's old mentor and Sephiroth’s lover, Angeal, and his other friend was dead, too. The only constant person in the footage of Sephiroth's trial was the mysterious Vincent Valentine. Zack knew little about him except for that they both worked for WRO. Perhaps Vincent knew how to get in touch with Sephiroth, Zack reasoned.

Zack was seized by an idea; he would try sending Vincent a message through WRO headquarters as no one seemed to know his home address.

He sat down and composed a quick note.

" _Dear Mr. Valentine,_

_We know each other only slightly, but I'm wondering if you could help me locate the ex-General Sephiroth Crescent?_

_I'm only asking because he was an old friend of mine from the SOLDIER program, I mentored under General Angeal Hewley and knew General Genesis Rhapsodos and General Sephiroth as well. I would like to contact him and wonder if you have any information as to his whereabouts?_

_I am including my contact information if you are able to pass it onto him or to someone else who might know where he is._

_I'll understand if you choose to ignore this missive as you don't wish to become involved or have no information for me._

_Thank you,_

_Sergeant Zackary Fair_ "

Zack put it aside to be given to the WRO mail room the very next morning, so it would be delivered to the reclusive man through internal mail and he could only hope that Vincent would reply to it.

Satisfied, Zack padded back to bed and cursed when he stepped on a high heeled shoe that he couldn't figure out who it belonged to and sourly deduced it was time to clean his _entire_ place.

The answer to Vincent’s dilemma came the very next day in the form of a notification informing him that he had received a message from ex-Soldier Zack Fair, now a member of the WRO like the gunman was. That name sounded faintly familiar to him and it took him a few minutes to remember that was the name of Cloud’s friend, the one presumed dead until it was revealed he had been in a coma for several years. He also remembered hearing that the man had eventually awoken from his coma and was functioning within society like normal. He didn’t yet know all the details, but he did remember tidbits of gossip he’d heard from friends, co-workers, and other people. Those that had known Zack, Cloud included, had all spoken well about the ex-Soldier. He was well liked and most people seemed to trust him so maybe he would be a good choice.

He silently peered into Sephiroth’s room after noticing that the door was half ajar. If the door was closed, it often meant he wanted to be left alone, but since Vincent’s arrival last night, Sephiroth only kept the bathroom door shut. He had showered that night and even had slowly eaten a small portion of food, though it was still less than Vincent approved of. Still, it was something and he knew it would take some time before the younger man was regularly consuming the appropriate number of calories for someone of his size and gender.

As exhausted as he had been, it had taken Vincent a few hours just to fall asleep since he had been haunted by the ethereal image of a sleeping Sephiroth, in _his_ bed, along with the faint scent of said man clinging to his sheets.  Alone in the privacy of his room without any witnesses, he had felt his body responding in the most unwelcome way. Skin heating up and his pants tenting, the urge to slip his hand under the waistband of his pants increased until he caught himself in the process of doing just that. Horrified with himself and his body’s reaction to a vulnerable, malnourished man, he had jerked his hand away as if he’d just been burned by fire. Stumbling out of his bed, he had rushed to the bathroom to take the coldest shower that he could possibly bear. While he leaned over, hands braced against the wall and head hanging, he’d repeated in his head like a mantra that _he was just lonely, the feeling would pass, and Sephiroth just needed him but not in **that** way_. After he had calmed down enough and put himself back to bed, he eventually fell asleep feeling like he had lied to himself.

Blinking away the unsettling memory, Vincent cursed under his breath as he stared at the man sitting on the windowsill in his usual spot, staring outside at whatever caught his attention. When he felt that uninvited feeling burning once more in his chest, he retreated to his study to pour himself a drink and ponder about what he should do. Normally, he’d spend hours brooding in the darkness with a wine glass in hand, or a bottle, but these past several months, he had abruptly put a stop to that. He wasn’t alone anymore and was needed by a person the world still hated.

Taking a sip of his wine, he wondered if he should just head to the WRO to receive the message, but decided against that. He was unwilling to leave Sephiroth alone for such an undetermined amount of time, especially since he had only just returned from a mission. The man was isolated out here and the more he left him alone, the worse off he’d become. What he could do was ask someone he trusted enough to open the letter and read it to him over the phone. Or ask that it be sent to his address, but again, that idea didn’t sit well with him. Not even the WRO knew where he resided and he wasn’t about to supply such personal information. Decision made, he dialed the WRO and was directed to the mail room. It took some time, and several sighs and growls, but eventually he reached a competent person that could help him.

After being read the letter by an older, professional woman called Nya, Vincent politely thanked the one he often referred to as Miss Nya, even though she often firmly reminded him that that was not necessary. Why he trusted her, he wasn’t quite certain, but something about her reminded him slightly of his deceased mother.  That and she was one of the few that didn’t try to change him or demand anything from him, except that he did his job right. She worked for the WRO as Intel, part-time accountant, and handled Vincent’s files. She never attempted to pry into his personal life, didn’t know his home address, and even if someone higher up, like Reeve or even Rufus, demanded answers about Vincent from her, she kept her mouth cemented shut.

In the comfort of his slightly worn leather chair, Vincent silently pondered Zack’s message in his head as he stared at the man’s number displayed on his phone. It was strange how this opportunity had just happened to fall right into his lap. He’d briefly entertained the idea of discussing this with Sephiroth, but decided against this. Before he seriously considered anything, he would talk to Zack and if things went well, he’d bring him home as a surprise. Of course, the man would have to be blindfolded and his phone shut off. If Sephiroth approved of this surprise, this arrangement, he would allow Zack the privilege of knowing where their home was. Especially since if things went well, the ex-Soldier would be coming over quite a bit whenever he was free and Vincent wasn’t.

To: Zack Fair

_This is Vincent Valentine. For reasons I will not disclose, I will grant your request. Meet me around noon at the coordinates provided in a separate text. If you cannot meet me there at that time, just tell me and we’ll reschedule. I cannot be gone from my residence for long, so don’t be late._

9:45 A.M.

Hours later, Sephiroth found himself wandering around outside the townhouse. It was the first time in over a month that he had bothered to leave the house at all. He was incredibly bored and Vincent was gone _again_ , much to his chagrin. The ex-Turk had promised he’d only be gone for an hour or so and that’d he be back soon enough. He’d have to find a way to nail that man’s metal booted feet to the ground to keep him from flying off every time Reeve called. He frowned at the thought since it made him wonder if those two were close on a personal level. Were they…? Shaking his head with a grunt, he glared at nothing in particular while he silently berated himself for entertaining such ludicrous thoughts. What Vincent did in his spare time, especially regarding his personal life, was none of his business. The older male was a man with _urges_ , after all, and probably felt lonely at times. Sephiroth really couldn’t expect him to spend all of his time here babysitting him like he was an invalid, or a child. He was already taking up so much of his time and energy, not to mention he was living in his house using his water, electricity, food, and now his pillow. Sephiroth already didn’t believe he had a right to any of this, so what right did he have getting annoyed if Vincent left to spend time with others? Absolutely none.

Yet…he couldn’t help the way his stomach twisted in nasty knots at the thought of Vincent _touching_ someone else in such an intimate manner. He didn’t like where his thoughts were headed, so he quickly pushed them away in favor of watching some birds fighting over some crumbs he had thrown out to them. It calmed him to watch animals interact and proved to be a good distraction until such life sickened him enough to go back inside or shut his drapes.

Sephiroth’s attention quickly snapped to the sound of the gate opening and a car pulling smoothly into the driveway. He instantly relaxed when he recognized Vincent’s sleek, black car until he noticed there was someone sitting in the passenger side. The windows were slightly tinted, but weren’t dark enough to completely hide the people inside the car. Until they stepped out, he wouldn’t know who was inside, be it man or woman. Taking an involuntary step back, he scowled until he saw the familiar form of Vincent getting out of his car. A flash of movement directed his green gaze to the other side of the car and his eyes widened considerably when he saw the familiar face of one Zachary Fair. Zack…was _alive_? He’d spent all these years believing the man was dead only to see him in the flesh…or maybe he was just hallucinating right now. Perhaps this man wasn’t Zack but someone who resembled him greatly.

“Who…?” Started Sephiroth, taking another step back. Ever since his release from prison, he’d been devoid of all human contact besides Vincent. To suddenly be in the presence of someone other than the ex-Turk felt overwhelming and strange. A part of him wanted to dash back inside the house and hide in his room under his bed. The other part of him, the stronger part, kept himself rooted to the spot. He wouldn’t dare run away even if he secretly wanted to. The ex-General trusted Vincent with his life, his body, and his mind. He didn’t believe the gunman would ever willingly bring someone here that would harm him. Still, that didn’t mean he’d have to trust the other person, this Zack lookalike, but he would trust Vincent’s judgement. “Vincent, who is this and why is he here…?”

Sephiroth was shocked, irked and surprised at the same time when that person just flung their arms around him and lifted him up, then he realized that no one would dare touch him but one of his close friends. "Zack?" He questioned as he dangled in his arms.

Zack set him down and examined his friend, he hadn't aged in their ten years apart like Zack had, but he also didn't look at his top physical peak either. He was too skinny for one. Sephiroth had always been long and lean, but now he had more of a swimmers build. Even the baggy cargo pants and black sweater he wore couldn't disguise that he had lost weight. He looked rather haggard as if he were sleep deprived as well and his pale face looked slightly grey with fatigue. His long, lustrous hair was back in a tight braid that exposed more of his face than Zack was used to seeing and he almost felt embarrassed to witness the anguished look in his eyes. The wedding ring he wore around his neck on a plain silver chain did not go unnoticed by the sharp blue Mako eyes of Zachary Fair.

"Good to see you in the flesh, Sephiroth, what little of it remains on you. What's with the skeletal look? I suppose it goes with Dracula over there," Zack joked indicating to Vincent, who stiffened at this. "Sorry, Vinny, just trying to break the ice with scrawny butt over here," he said putting his arm around Sephiroth.

Sephiroth ignored what he had said. "You're alive, but how? You look older," he said with a frown.

"People do age, unlike you. I was in a coma for years and finally woke up. Since then, I started working at the WRO and was promoted to Sergeant about a year ago. I was married in that time and got divorced, no kids. Now we're all caught up. How sad it is that you can summarize ten years in a couple of sentences? Now I feel like I did nothing with my life," Zack said, his words all over the place, like they always were when he was excited.

"It really _is_ you." Sephiroth said.

"Buddy, I missed you, I'm so happy you're back!" Zack said and placed his hand on Sephiroth's shoulder and Sephiroth had to look away to blink back tears to hear someone, anyone say that.

"Perhaps we should go into the house for refreshments? Then I have some paperwork to attend to." Vincent cut in to draw Zack's attention from Sephiroth's emotional display since he knew how the proud man felt about giving into his depression in front of people. Vincent didn't actually have any paperwork to do, he just wanted to give the two friends some alone time.

"Do you have any food?" Zack asked him.

"Come along to the kitchen." Vincent sighed.

"Is that a wedding ring you're wearing?" Zack asked his friend, causing Sephiroth to curl his hand around it as if to hide it from view.

"Yes," he admitted with a blush.

"So are you and Vincent spouses? I guess that is what you call each other, right? I hope I'm not offending you. I mean, I have heard in some gay marriages, they call each other partners." Zack spouted off as oblivious as ever and then stopped when he noticed both men had stopped moving and were both sporting similar blushes.

"We're not married," Vincent explained. "As I said, Sephiroth is my friend, who is staying with me."

"This is one of two rings that were intended for Angeal and I, he wanted to...I wanted to…" Sephiroth said, averting his eyes again because they glittered with tears.

"Sephiroth, I'm sorry, wow, am I ever munching on my army boots today. My mother always told me that the Goddess blessed me with enough sense to fill a thimble...and still have room to add more!" Zack hurriedly said and then noticed that Vincent had stepped forward and had placed his hand on Sephiroth's back in a display of silent support. This touched Zack at how he was touching the _untouchable_ man, that few would have dared to and Sephiroth’s grateful smile back was almost endearing. He wondered what was going on between the two men. He didn't sense they were a couple, but they seemed rather close. He felt slightly jealous due to his own long standing crush on Sephiroth that he held in his heart of hearts.

"It's okay, Zack." Sephiroth said. "I didn't know of Angeal's intentions until much later," he explained. "Let's go get you some food, you're _always_ hungry."

Vincent couldn't help but spy as the two men sat on Sephiroth window seat talking of old times. Vincent silently hovered around the window by giving the occasional beat to his wings, peeking through the side of the curtains as he did.

"I miss him, too." Zack said. "I'm not trying to suggest that my feelings towards him were stronger. Mine were more like those you would have for a beloved teacher and friend. A light went out in the world when Angeal died. Are you okay?" He asked him.

"I'm-I'm not" Sephiroth said and broke into sobs and Vincent frowned when Zack's arms enveloped him, then he realized that his embrace wasn't intimate, but that of a supportive friend.

"I know it hurts," Zack said in sympathy as he lightly patted his back.  "Look, you can't keep on being cooped up here. Come to my place for a couple days. You need to be back into society, you need to be surrounded by life. We can go out or just hang out at my place, there is nothing so odd about your appearance a hat and a pair of sunglasses couldn't fix. I have a spare bedroom. We can go sparring in the virtual reality room of WRO or in real life," he suggested.

"But Vincent…" Protested Sephiroth.

"Is invited too, he can sleep on my couch. Bring all the deer you said you like to watch, if you must, but you're coming to my place for some fun,"  he insisted.

"I need to talk to Vincent about this." Sephiroth said in a hesitant voice.

"So go find him." Zack said.

Vincent quickly flew into the open window of his office and was settled at his desk when Sephiroth politely knocked on the door.

"Come in," he called.

"Zack has invited me back to his place for us to spend some time together. We intend to find a temporary disguise for me. I told him I had to discuss it with you. It would just be for a few days…" Sephiroth explained.

"I think you should go, you have been so lonely lately. If anyone deserves some fun, it's you. I shall miss you while you are away." Vincent said.

"You will?" Sephiroth said in shock.

"I am very fond of you," Vincent said, placing a hand on his shoulder that Sephiroth could feel the warmth of through his sweater. The warmth seemed to spread throughout his entire body and it was all Sephiroth could do not to lean forward to greedily _inhale_ the man.

"Zack said you could come with us," Sephiroth volunteered.

"My days of being in society are long over. Your relationship with Zack, were you two ever...?" Vincent asked him, feeling a flare of jealousy and brushed it off.

"Only friends, apparently I like my men more _mature._ " Sephiroth said with a fond smile.

"Yes, I can see that about you. I hope you have fun." Vincent said.

"I'll miss you, too." Sephiroth said wishing that Vincent would give him a hug goodbye to assure him that he truly would be missed. Then he felt pathetic at how childish his wish was.

"Well, you had best get packed while I talk to Zack," Vincent suggested to him, as he longed to hug him too, to feel his warm body in his arms, his cheek pressed to the softness of his hair.

"Sephiroth said you wanted to see me?" Zack inquired.

"Yes about this little visit. I think it is a preposterous idea, Sephiroth is not ready for society any more than it is ready for him. He's still grieving his lover and very vulnerable. He's prone to depression, crying jags are common, along with him brooding in bed and eating little. But at the same time, he can't remain buried here forever. This is his home as long as he wants it to be, he's free to come and go as he pleases. I will allow this visit if you can guarantee you will show him the patience he needs and encourage him to take better care of himself. Not to mention be very careful of disguises, his self-esteem is at an all-time low, he doesn't need people mocking him or staring at him. You need to shield him from all of that. Do I have your word on all of these things?" He all but demanded of Zack.

"He's my friend, I wouldn't have invited him if I felt he wasn't ready. You have my word I will take good care of him." Zack promised.

"Good because if you don't…I'm going to come for you one night and suck the blood from your body," Vincent said and used his now invisible wings to make it look like his cape was billowing and "borrowed" a pair of teeth from Galian beast so it looked like he had fangs and leered at the younger man with an evil smile that caused him to jump back in fright from Vincent's frightening display.

A couple of hours later ( _after disguising the ex-General in a realistic looking, shoulder-length wavy brunette wig and dark shades, of course_ ), Zack and Sephiroth were seated in a decent restaurant with a dimly lit, yet affable, comfortable atmosphere that happened to be located nearby Zack’s residence. It was chosen primarily because Zack not only enjoyed the food, it was a mere five-minute walk back to his place. That and Vincent had suggested going somewhere close to his home just in case Sephiroth hyperventilated or wanted to leave. Despite himself, Zack couldn’t help feeling a bit spooked by someone as intimidating as Vincent. There was no way in Gaia he was going to dare cross that man. Despite the obvious joke, he still remembered the way those vivid, blood-drenched eyes had looked, burning straight through him with a promise of vengeance should anything bad occur. Even without the threat of death or torture, Zack never would have willingly allowed any harm to befall his own friend.

_Friend_ …yes, that’s what Sephiroth was to him. Sitting across from him, he smiled as he talked and ate with Sephiroth mostly listening to him, commenting now and then when it was needed. Zack was fine with that since he was used to being the talker in most of his relationships with all sorts of people and his friend had never been the most sociable person though if given the opportunity, Sephiroth could prove quite chatty. In many ways, the former General of Shinra had changed yet at the same time, many things about him was still the same. Despite the mantle of depression that clung to him, Zack could still see the same Sephiroth in there. The same seemingly untouchable, stoic man who bore a heart inside his chest in spite of what Hojo and others had taught him. The world still believed him to be a heartless monster, but Zack could see that that wasn’t true. No one who lacked a heart could hurt so much over a deceased loved one. Monsters didn’t mourn the dead and they certainly didn’t care about the living.

Which reminded Zack of his other friend… **Cloud**. The spiky-haired boy had changed so much since Zack’s coma and not for the better, unfortunately. There seemed only to be a ghost of the boy he had once knew inside of this… _bitter_ man. He was virulent and quiet, and didn’t speak well of Sephiroth at all, for several reasons. Despite all of this, Zack couldn’t bear to hear such poison being spat out from Spike’s mouth or from any other mouth, either. Most of Cloud’s friends seemed to harbor similar feelings of resentment towards Sephiroth and because of this, Zack couldn’t stand being around them for any length of time. They were stuck in the past, congested in bad memories they couldn’t, wouldn’t let go of. It had been several months since he’d last seen any of them because of the huge fight he had had with them regarding the nasty comments they had made about the former General. He didn’t have the heart to go back and get angry all over again. Being the optimistic, friendly person he was, he didn’t enjoy being around toxic people and he couldn’t sit by and listen to such hateful words about a man he had cared for, and still cared for.

“…so the guy said he’d be back in five minutes, but after like what, ten or fifteen minutes, I knew something was up. I went back into the house to check on him and sure enough, I saw him trying to squeeze his fat, hairy ass out of his tiny bathroom window. What’s weird is he was wearing a hot pink, sequin dress with panty hose, pumps and everything…except underwear, unfortunately. I’m still trying to forget the sight of that ass wriggling around along with his family jewels…but I think it’s all burned into my retinas. Goddess, it was so disgusting, but funny!” Enthusiastically told Zack between bites of his burger and fries.

Sephiroth cracked a smile as he listened to Zack tell his tale with such enthusiasm he didn’t have the heart to interrupt. He was doing his best to ignore the curious stares and the sounds of many people laughing, talking, eating, and silverware clinking against plates. No one seemed to know who he was, or really care, but that didn’t stop the inquisitive or appreciative stares he received by people sitting in nearby tables or passing by. In the past, he had been used to being gawked at, but now…now he couldn’t stand it. His skin felt too tight, the lights too bright, and his chest constricted to the point that he could barely breathe. Underneath the table, he twisted and tore apart napkins in an effort to calm himself down. Beads of sweat gathered on his forehead before rolling down past his brow and temples. Everything was getting too overwhelming for him to the point he openly clutched at his necklace, curling his fingers around his ring as he panted.

“Pardon me, Zack,” quickly bit out Sephiroth as he swiftly pushed his seat back before he rose to his full towering height and fast walked to the restroom, still mindful not to cause a scene. Once inside the thankfully empty bathroom, he slipped into an empty stall, locked it, and sat down on the closed toilet seat. Hugging himself, he rocked back and forth, his breath rapid and uneven. Water pricked at the corners of his eyes and he squeezed them shut, suddenly wishing Vincent was here with him. He could almost feel that light touch on his shoulder, on his back and as he imagined it, his breathing gradually evened out until he was breathing normally again and his rocking had subsided some. He leaned over, hugging his legs together and pressing his forehead against his knees. Breathing shallowly, he imagined he could smell the ex-Turk’s scent, though it was a difficult thing to imagine when he was sitting in a bathroom that smelled mildly of mildew, human waste, and urine. Wrinkling his nose, he sat up and sighed. He was a lost, pathetic man who couldn’t even function normally in a restaurant full of non-threatening people…without Vincent. What was he going to do, lug Vincent with him everywhere he wanted to go like a security blanket? No, there’s no way Vincent would follow him around everywhere plus…what was left of his pride, which admittedly wasn’t much, wouldn’t allow such a thing. He’d have to tough this out on his own and get the fuck over it. Or at least, that’s what he tried to tell himself. It was worlds easier saying something than actually doing it.

That’s when Sephiroth remembered…

_“Have fun,” said Vincent, who seemed hesitant as if he wasn’t eager to send him off. Or at least, that’s what Sephiroth hoped. “Did you pack your pillow?”_

_Sephiroth’s face flushed a bright beet red and he ducked his head as he mumbled, “…yes…”_

_Zack anchored his hands on his hips and tilted his head slightly, looking quite perplexed. “Y’know, I have pillows at home, Seph. How fussy are you?”_

_It was one thing to admit to Vincent that he found comfort in his scent, but to admit it to Zack, he wasn’t keen on that at all. Admitting it to the ex-Turk had been embarrassing enough as it were and yet, it was like an intimate secret shared only between them. He really didn’t feel comfortable sharing that with Zack right now and possibly not ever. Friends didn’t need to know everything, after all._

_“He has sensitive skin and his nose is sensitive to certain scents. I use detergent for sensitive skin. Last time I used regular detergent, he broke out in a nasty rash,” explained Vincent. This was partially true since Sephiroth hated strong, sharp smells and luckily for him, the gunman seemed to prefer lighter, barely there smells when it came to body care, candles, and laundry softener.  Though his skin was actually sensitive to some things, detergent wasn’t usually one of them. He felt deeply touched that Vincent had sensed his discomfort, had known he didn’t want that particular bit of information about his need for his scent revealed to Zack, and had lied for him._

_“Oh, well, that makes sense then. I think I use the regular stuff,” said Zack absently, who seemed satisfied by Vincent’s explanation._

_The crimson-eyed man suddenly looked as if he had forgotten something vital. Turning his face to him, Vincent had inquired, “Sephiroth, did you pack a blanket, too?”_

_“No, I didn’t,” answered Sephiroth, slightly confused as he watched Vincent disappear back into the house. A few minutes later, the gunman returned with a tote bag that he placed in the back seat of the car._

“Sephiroth, is everything okay?” Questioned Zack, who poked his head in the bathroom before entering the restroom fully. He spotted a pair of black boots that could only belong to one person, especially since there was only one person in the bathroom besides himself. Unless…

“Anyone in there _with_ you?”

“Very funny, Zack,” sighed Sephiroth as he opened the stall and leveled the other ex-Soldier with what he hoped was a glare, but probably looked more like a tired kitten. He sighed again when Zack actually peered suspiciously into the stall he had just stepped out of. Shaking his head, he inquired, “If it’s all the same to you, could we please just go to your place now?”

Zack nodded, but decided not to pry this time since he could tell that his friend was bothered by something. “Sure thing, Seph. I already paid the bill and boxed up your meal. I was really tempted to eat it _buuuut_ you look like you need it more. It’s okay, you can eat it later or tomorrow. Just don’t wait too long. I’m a ravenous beast, you know! All right, let’s go.”

On the drive to Zack’s residence, Sephiroth twitched in his seat like a man fighting the urge to scratch himself. In the backseat, he could see the pillow and he desperately craved to snatch it, hold it close, and inhale that sweet, masculine scent, but he restrained himself. It would seem suspicious if he just grabbed it and started sniffing it in front of Zack. The man was silly, yes, but he wasn’t stupid like some others might believe. After all, as kind as Angeal had been, even he wouldn’t have bothered to mentor an idiot or a fool.

As soon as Zack led them into his place, Sephiroth asked where the bathroom was and as soon as his friend had pointed, he had fled in that direction with a couple of his bags, namely the one with the pillow and sleepwear. As soon as he was inside the bathroom, he locked the door and ripped out the pillow from the carefully sealed bag. Holding it close, he sagged against the door as he buried his face into it. Despite himself, a low, but thankfully quiet moan eased its way out from his throat.

“Everything okay in there?” Came Zack’s muffled voice from the other side of the door.

Even though the younger man couldn’t see him, Sephiroth still felt his face heat up in mild embarrassment. “Yeah…just changing…I’ll be out in a few minutes…” It was then that Sephiroth noticed the state of the bathroom. It was…a mess. Towels hung from random places and were strewn all over the floor along with some dirty clothes. He could see mold growing on the walls in the bathroom, which caused him to cringe and after a quick glance to the filthy tub and sink, he felt like vomiting. If this is how the bathroom looked, then he was afraid to see the rest of the place. Earlier, he had been in too much of a rush to get his ‘pillow fix’ to notice how messy Zack’s home truly was.

Opening the bathroom door slowly, he exited as if afraid he might step on a land mine. What he saw caused his face to pale even more, if possible, and one of his silver eyebrows to twitch uncontrollably. Slowly glancing around the living room, he took in the atrocity that not even a cadet in the barracks could ever get away with. How Zack lived here, he didn’t know. Plates, cups, and cans were left on tables, counters, the floor, and other flat surfaces along with pillows, clothes, magazines, and other random objects strewn about the place. Even before being schooled by Angeal in the fine art of housecleaning, Sephiroth hadn’t been this bad. His own mess had been more…contained. This…was an _explosion_ of all things that were wrong in the world. This would simply not do.

Zack felt uneasy as he watched what looked like an angry Sephiroth. He remembered that look. That look meant bad things were about to befall someone, mainly him. “Uh…so…what’s wrong, Seph? You look…”

“When…was the last time you properly cleaned your home?” Asked the silver-haired man slowly as if afraid he might bite off the blue-eyed man’s head. Before he killed him, he’d like to at least punish him suitably first.

The dark-haired man scratched the back of his head. “Uh…yesterday?”

“If I had not known you, I would not have believed it if you had told me that Angeal had mentored you,” deadpanned Sephiroth before he grabbed the younger man by the forearm as if to save him from evil. “Where are your cleaning supplies?”

“Under the sink in the kitchen. Why?”

“Get your ass in gear. I’m going to show you how to properly clean your house,” growled Sephiroth as he forcibly pulled Zack after him into the kitchen. He quickly ducked down, opened the cabinets and grabbed as many cleaning supplies as he could manage to carry. He was not surprised to find that most of the bottles were mostly full and some weren’t even opened. No matter how much Zack bitch and whined, they wouldn’t be getting any sleep tonight until this pig sty became a human dwelling fit for occupation.


	2. Part II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and as always, enjoy.

Hours later, Sephiroth laid awake listening to the slightly muffled sounds of a snoring Zack. Feeling slightly chilly, he leaned over and grabbed the tote with the blanket. Pulling the blanket out, he was surprised to find that it wasn’t his blanket, it was Vincent’s. Like a crack addict, he gathered the blanket in his hands and brought it to his face before inhaling deeply. Sighing, he curled up on his side with the blanket cocooned around him and his face smashed into the pillow. As comforting and pleasant as it felt to have _his_ scent wrapped around him, it didn’t feel like it was enough anymore. Sephiroth wanted to crawl back into Vincent’s bed, but this time, he wanted him in the bed _with_ him. Such a desire took him by surprise since Vincent was his friend, one of his _only_ friends. Then again, Angeal had started off as his friend, too, but had become more. Scoffing, Sephiroth rolled over onto his stomach and glared at nothing in particular. What was he even thinking anyway? Just because Vincent cared about him didn’t mean that it was in _that_ way. Plus, most male friends didn’t really sleep in the same bed together unless there was no other choice. They didn’t feel compelled to crawl into another friend’s bed whether he was there or not.

What Sephiroth did know, however, was that he did miss Vincent like he’d promised he would. What he hadn’t expected was just how much he would miss said man. He’d barely been gone eight hours and already he longed to go back home. What was it that Angeal had called it once? _Homesick_. He was homesick. Could he really last another day or two without Vincent? The idea itself caused him to groan and burrow deeper within the blanket. He wanted to go home very badly right now, but knew it would be rude to wake Zack up right now. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to be around Zack right now, he did. He truly wanted to spend time with him and slowly digest his old friend back into his life. The ex-madman just didn’t want to do it without Vincent being around. It felt wrong, strange even, to be around someone else for a change. Was it selfish and unreasonable for him to want to spend time with both of his friends? Would he always have to flit back and forth between his friends, like a kid between divorced parents? Or maybe Vincent was actually relieved to get some time off from him. Was that it? He did say he’d miss him, or was that a lie? He didn’t know. All he truly knew at this moment was what he felt, which was how much he missed him.

Elsewhere, Vincent paced his study like a caged beast with too much pent up energy. After a few hours of this, a sudden clarity had struck him in regards to his depressed friend. _This_ …must be a small taste of what Sephiroth must feel whenever he leaves for work or errands. To be alone in this house felt maddening now, and strangely enough, it hadn’t felt like this until he had another body besides his own staying here. Vincent wasn’t a people person by any means, never had been, and he preferred to be alone since he liked his privacy and space well enough; however, now that sweet comfort was replaced by the unwelcome occupants desire and loneliness. Those had been two things long since dead within him until he had befriended the broken man. These were things he hadn’t felt since Lucrecia and it distressed him to know that he burned deeply for her son, for a mourning man wrecked by loss and trauma. Yet with all personal things, Vincent did what he did best, he ran from the issue. Like the stubborn, weak man that he was, he buried his feelings down somewhere secret so that he could live in denial for the time being.

Sinking down into his chair for the umpteenth time that night, Vincent stared at the flames dancing in the fireplace. He should feel grateful that Zack was helping Sephiroth in ways that he himself cannot, but for the moment, all he felt was a strange sense of jealousy he shouldn’t feel. It wasn’t Zack’s fault that he was more personable, more open and better at comforting people than Vincent ever was. In a lot of ways, he supposed that Zack had inherited such traits from Angeal…no, _stop_. No, he wouldn’t do that. Closing his eyes, he forced his traitorous, unwelcome thoughts away. He needed to stop comparing himself to Zack and he definitely didn’t need to compare himself to a dead man. This train of thinking would help no one, especially not Sephiroth, so he quickly purged such thoughts from his mind.

Leaning his head back against the chair, he sighed. Not even a full day and he already missed Sephiroth like the plants missed the sun at night. Whenever he was out running errands or working, he did miss Sephiroth, but not enough to brood and that was because he had been focused on something specific. How was he going to last a few days without that man’s presence in his house when he could barely stand a few hours? It was pathetic really. Especially since he was seriously tempted to take Zack up on his offer…

No, he would not go. He would leave them both to their own devices and he’d wait. The gunman would have to learn to deal with this like a mature adult since eventually, Sephiroth would recover. He’d want to go out more, spend time with friends, and have a life basically. Vincent couldn’t really expect to keep him locked up forever, sitting in his room waiting each day for him to return like a faithful dog. Sephiroth leaving periodically to spend time with other people didn’t bother him. He wasn’t some possessive, territorial beast bent on keeping the man with him always. The truth of the matter was, he was afraid that Sephiroth would leave and not come back. Though he had meant what he had said to Zack about Sephiroth being free to come and go as he pleased, he couldn’t help hoping that the younger man never left for good.

Pushing off from the couch, he left the study and traveled through the house until he came to Sephiroth’s room. Pausing at the door, he rested a hand on the wood, his fingers curling until his hand became a fist. Pushing the door open, he stepped inside the empty, dark room. His long legs led him to the bed to which he slowly sank down on the edge of. The ex-Turk sat there for a few minutes, feeling a bit awkward and foolish for being in his friend’s bedroom while he’s not there. Glancing at the bed, he noticed the pillow Sephiroth had been using right until he had recently commandeered Vincent’s pillow. Smiling slightly at this, he picked up the pillow and stroked his human hand over the material. Wrinkling his nose, he detected a familiar scent, which caused him to lean over and sniff it. The moment the scent entered his nose, he realized it was Sephiroth’s distinctive scent, still clinging to the pillowcase and the rest of the bed. It felt comforting, soothing, actually, to smell it, to have it so close and now he completely understood why Sephiroth felt compelled to smell these things. He then hugged the pillow against his body, hugging it tight and wishing he could do this with Sephiroth like Zack had.

Zack had planned to take Sephiroth to a nightclub that evening but decided instead for them to stay in and watch a movie, drink some beer and order pizza. The movie was _Fear and Loathing in Vegas_ , a movie that was comical and even Sephiroth found himself chuckling at Johnny Depp's antics on screen. Zack watched his friend and felt he had made the right choice. Zack did like to go out, but that was mainly in an attempt to meet someone. Women weren't hard for him to find, but he longed to meet someone who was serious about settling down as Cynthia had been.

Sephiroth found himself enjoying his time spent with Zack and talking about old times and sharing memories about Angeal, despite missing Vincent. Zack's company was soothing and he held no expectations of Sephiroth. He simply liked him and enjoyed his company.

Zack placed another slice of pizza on Sephiroth's plate, having discovered that if engrossed in something, he would eat without realizing it and filed that information away to tell it to Vincent. That was the fourth slice he had eaten. He wondered what their true relationship was, since Vincent seemed to act as a combination of father, nurse and friend to Sephiroth. He was obviously very protective of him to the point of being territorial, yet he obviously wanted only the best for him. There obviously was nothing toxic in their relationship or else Zack would have attempted to remove his friend from the situation. No, he would just have Sephiroth at his place over the weekend and return him on Monday. He sensed that Sephiroth missed his friend anyway. Zack wasn't the fool most people took him to be, his mouth just spouted off more than he usually intended to say. He was actually very intelligent.

"That woman, I know her." Sephiroth said studying what was obviously Zack's wedding picture when the movie was over. He found himself wondering what his own wedding would have been like. He could picture it in a garden because of how Angeal had loved them, under a tree with them wearing matches tuxes. He imagined himself leaning in to claim his first wedded kiss and leaning back to study the flushed and ecstatic face of his groom and opened his eyes to find Vincent's face there in place of Angeal's. He blushed at this and allowed Zack's voice to draw him back to reality.

"You knew Cyn, too, back in the day, at least in passing." Zack said.

"Sin? What an odd name," Sephiroth remarked.

"It's just a nickname for her. She used to be a TURK before she quit after becoming disillusioned by Shinra, she was known as Cissnei. While Clo-I was fleeing from Shinra myself, she aided me. I asked her to look after my parents and she did, all eight years I was in the coma, right until I woke up. I was confused, I was only twenty-three and then I woke up in a thirty-one-year-old body. I tried to live with my parents, but they treated me like a little boy. So Cynthia took me into her home, she helped me adjust to my new maturity, got me into an exercise program to help me develop the muscle mass that I lost while in a coma. She essentially built a man out of me, she had waited for me. So I married her after I received the job offer from Shinra. I loved and respected her but we were just at different maturity rates and she wanted children and I wasn't ready for that. She never cheated on me, she simply told me it wasn't working out and we got an amicable divorce. She's my friend and always will be. She got remarried last year, I was at her wedding and she is expecting a baby. I'm going to be its Uncle Zack. Her husband is a great man but dull as dishwater. She would like to meet you when you're ready to. She's the only one I told of your presence here. I hope you don’t mind, but I literally can and have trusted her with my life." Zack explained to the slighter man.

"Even with what happened she wants to meet me?" Sephiroth asked him.

"She knows it wasn't your fault, she's a kind person. She feels like you are her friend already because you are mine. We're invited to dinner tomorrow night if you want. She says she understands if you can't make it. I thought I would drop you home after that. But only after we spar at WRO, there is no one there normally on weekends but a few janitors and I have a key to the dojo. Are you ready to cross blades with me, soldier?" Zack said in a mock serious tone of voice.

"Anytime. I can beat you with my eyes closed." Sephiroth boasted.

Sephiroth wore a matching fitted black gym outfit like Zack's; both hadn't bothered with the protective gear as they faced each other at opposite ends of the dojo. Sephiroth felt almost back to normal again with the familiar comfortable weight of Masamune in his left hand. It felt good to have someone to spar with that was almost on his level, that was trained to fight with a blade.

"I won't go easy on you!" Zack yelled as he flew towards him clutching his oversized sword.

Though out of practice, Sephiroth easily deflected his blow, feeling comfortable to be sparring again, he felt at the top of his game with Masamune singing her victory song with each blow. They flew around each other, lunging and parrying, circling each other, both using their full strengths because they knew the other enhanced male could take it. Sparks flew as the oversized blade met the slim deadly blade. 

Sephiroth could have easily disarmed Zack at any point, but toyed with him as a cat does his prey, drawing him into his deadly spiral, allowing him to get cocky and then with one single thrust, Zack was disarmed and his sword flew across the dojo to imbed itself into the wall.

"I win," Sephiroth said as calmly as possible and touched Masamune’s tip to Zack's throat, even though he was winded. He wasn't even close to his physical peak, he realized and wondered when he had gotten too weak.

"I'll have to pay for _that_ " he commented as he looked at his sword embedded in the wall. "I took it easy on you," Zack claimed, tossing him a towel and handing him a bottle of water that he thirstily drank down.

"You two are great!" A female voice said, making them both turn to see an attractive petite Wutaian-looking woman with her hair worn in a bob down to her shoulders and large friendly brown eyes. She seemed to be dressed for her own workout. “I have already thought that I should learn sword play, but you know, a girl gets used to her own fighting style. So I don't really see the point in...oh, gawd, Sephiroth!" She cried when she realized who she was addressing, even with his hair weaved into a single braid, and with his unusual height and eyes, there was no mistaking who he was. 

Zack started forward as protective as any mother bear of her cub, determined to knock the girl out if he had to if she started to spew poison about Sephiroth to bring down his already flagging spirits. He knew her as one of Cloud’s friends, the loud one, but couldn’t recall her name. Besides, in their company, he had spent most of his time arguing mostly with Cloud, Tifa, and Barret. The others sometimes talked, but it seemed most of them were fine with allowing those three to do the majority of the talking. He remembered sometimes seeing that cat thing, Red something other, or whatever, but it was always silent and tended to leave when they argued as if it didn’t seem concerned about the topic of a living Sephiroth.

Sephiroth remained in place as he accessed the situation before him. He wasn’t sure if he should be touched or insulted that Zack had immediately jumped in front of him like a human shield, but quickly realized that if Vincent had been here, he would have done the same, no doubt. While he stared at the short woman, he realized that she looked…startlingly familiar, but couldn’t quite place her name, or why she seemed familiar to him. Tilting his head slightly, he slowly inquired, “Do I know you? You seem…familiar…”

The Wutainese girl’s first instinct, or should it be said, her old instinct, was to fight back, but against _what_? The silver-haired man stood stock still as he seemed to calmly regard her, his trademark sword Masamune nowhere to be seen. Intelligence and a bit of wariness shone in his eyes as if he were the one that should be worried. This caused her to guffaw loudly at the idea that someone as powerful and deranged as the Demon of Wutai, would feel somewhat threatened by her. Yuffie was very confident in herself and her abilities, but even the proud woman knew she was no match for Sephiroth, sane or not. Something was up, that much she knew and she’d find out even if it killed her, well, she’d settle for getting away with a few minor burns.

“You tried to kill me a few million times,” sniffed Yuffie, looking the pale-skinned man up and down a few times. All those years hunting down Sephiroth and battling him, she’d never been given the opportunity to really look at him before. Now that she had the chance, she couldn’t help feeling pulled in by his magnetism, the same mesmerizing pull that always lured in his fans by the truckloads. Despite his gaunt features, she had to admit…hot damn, the man was…so fine, like _Vincent fine_ , and his deep, silky voice sent shivers up and down her spine. It was a shame this man was their enemy, well, _former_ enemy, actually, because she definitely wouldn’t mind ‘sparring’ with him a few times, if you knew what she meant. Wait, what the hell was she thinking?! Was she becoming daft in the head or something?! This was **Sephiroth** , _The_ Sephiroth!

“That wasn’t him,” Quickly cut in Zack like the knight in shining armor that he was. Pointing at Yuffie, he added, “Quit exaggerating already, woman! You’re really not helping any, y’know…” Then he looked at Sephiroth and gestured towards the door with a jerk of his chin. “C’mon, let’s go. We’re done here.”

“It’s fine, Zack,” slowly started Sephiroth, a small smile adorning his pale lips. Looking back at the young woman, he stated, “You are one of Cloud’s…companions, I take it. For what it’s worth, and it may be worth nothing to you, I am truly sorry for _everything_. I know…nothing I can ever do or say will be enough to even begin to atone for those atrocities. I know that, but I still wanted you to know regardless.”

Yuffie could do little else but stand there and gawk like a fish out of water, her mouth opening and closing as if the words were stuck in her throat. She did nothing but watch as both attractive men left the dojo without another word. This…was so unexpected and surreal that she didn’t know what to think and thinking wasn’t exactly a favorite pastime of her’s. She wasn’t necessarily stupid or anything, she just preferred to get out there, _do_ things, and have fun without tangling her mind in useless, annoying knots.

The rest of the night was spent ordering more pizza and watching a show about the undead and human survivors trying to avoid death while combating other survivors. Zack wasn’t that much into it, but while flipping channels, he had noticed the keen interest his friend had displayed when he had seen the scene of a policeman shooting a dead little girl in the head. Since he had chosen what they had watched before, he let Sephiroth choose this time. After a few episodes, the blue-eyed man got more into the show, but whenever there was a walker scene, he tended to grab onto Sephiroth and hide his face into his shoulder.

“Zack, this isn’t real,” Sephiroth would often remind him, but didn’t shrug him off.

“I guess after living with Dracula, nothing scares you,” joked Zack in an attempt to hide his wounded manly pride.

Sephiroth rolled his eyes. “He’s as much a vampire as I.”

“So he turned you?!” Gasped the dark-haired man though he was only joking. He made a show of gawking at Sephiroth’s strong, long neck and pretended to be checking it for bite marks.

“Zack…” Came the ex-General’s warning tone followed by a sigh. “Watch the show or I’m locking you in a kennel for the night.”

It was nice, though, spending another night in with his friend and as they sat together watching, joking, and commenting sometimes, he realized then that Vincent had been right. Sephiroth wasn’t ready for the outside world just yet, wasn’t ready to mingle amongst humanity. However, Zack figured if he slowly integrated his friend back into the world of the living, eventually things would become better and Sephiroth wouldn’t be such a recluse. Then again, even back in the Soldier days, Sephiroth had never seemed to enjoy the balls, dates, and other social events planned by Shinra. The only times he seemed to enjoy himself at all was when he was in small company, the company of friends. Because of this, he was sure that Sephiroth would do well with Cynthia and after awhile, she would probably grow on him and he’d feel comfortable around her and her family.

During the night, while getting up to grab some water to quench his parched throat, he peeked in on Sephiroth sleeping. He was surprised to find the man hugging the pillow to his body instead of using it to support his head while he slept. He’d seen people do this before, but not exactly like this. Something about it seemed private to him, so he turned away and went back to bed. It took him awhile to get back to sleep since the image of his friend curled up with the pillow haunted him. He might not be the brightest person in existence, but even he realized that when Sephiroth did this, he was probably missing Angeal.

The next day, after lunch and more sparring at the Dojo with no unexpected guests this time, they arrived at Cynthia’s house in the early evening. The aroma of delicious food was thick in the air when they were greeted warmly by Cynthia and her husband, Paul, and led into the house to their seats in the dining room. It felt surreal to Sephiroth to walk into such a warm, normal home of a married couple that were just starting a family. He could almost see the ghosts of children running around and making a mess while laughing.

As the four of them sat at the dining table eating and conversing, well, Sephiroth listened more than he spoke, he felt himself slowly relaxing. Whenever he met new people, he felt unbearably uncomfortable and stiff and normally couldn’t wait to get away. Fortunately for him, what Zack had described about Cynthia and her husband was actually pretty accurate, except the part about Paul being dull. The man wasn’t the most amusing, but Sephiroth didn’t really find him dull. He was just a normal, kind man who allowed his wife to speak more and offered feedback now and then. He had known men who preferred to do all of the talking and wouldn’t allow their wives or girlfriends to even utter one word.

Watching Cynthia, he had been tempted to help her clean up the food, but Paul had shot up first after placing a gentle hand on his wife’s petite shoulder. Smiling, he had told her not to strain herself and that he’d take care of everything since she had put so much effort into preparing a delicious meal for them.

As he watched and listened, Sephiroth couldn’t help imagining him in Cynthia’s place, four months pregnant. Part of him envied her for being able to give the man she loved a child formed by their union. It’s not like he actually wanted to magically or surgically alter his body to be a woman, no, he was just fine with being a man. After all, he had spent his entire life in a poisoned womb and out of it having his body altered for science. It was just…he couldn’t help fantasizing about having the family Angeal had wanted. He imagined what it would have been like to carry a child to term, deliver it when it was born, and then hold it in his arms. And when he looked up, he saw the smiling, proud face of… _Vincent_? In his fantasies, it was usually Angeal’s face he saw, but lately, it was being replaced by the face of his closest friend. He wasn’t sure how he should feel about that, but had a feeling that Angeal would understand, would not have minded. Alive, he would have minded, but in death, Sephiroth felt Angeal wanted him to move on.

The drive back to Vincent’s townhouse felt unbearably long, like they’d been driving for _days_. In the passenger seat, he stared out the window at the zooming, green landscape while he fidgeted with the ring that hung around his neck. The closer they got, the more anxious he felt since the desire to see his friend again felt intensively unbearable. It felt almost as bad as missing Angeal and even Genesis. Perhaps part of him feared he’d come back home and nobody would be there again. He obviously didn’t handle loss well and he was paranoid Vincent would leave him, too, and end up dying.

“Miss him that bad, eh?” Asked Zack after a long bout of silence.

Sephiroth said nothing and refused to look at his friend, but didn’t miss the little smirk on Zack’s face.

“You should hug him when you see him, Seph. He looks like he needs it just as much as you do. There’s nothing wrong with it. Just go with it. I promise you he won’t freak out or hurt you if you hug him,” advised Zack as they neared the estate. He grinned a bit when he noticed a figure in red waiting outside leaning against the gate with his arms crossed. “Well, would you look at that. He looks like he’s been waiting for you…for quite awhile, by the looks of it…”

For a long moment, Sephiroth continued to be stubbornly silent before he eventually muttered, “I’ll try…”

As soon as Zack pulled up to the gate, he shut the car off and stepped out of the car after grabbing all of Sephiroth’s belongs. He concealed a grin when he noticed how eager, yet shy his friend seemed to be as he climbed out of his car. Shooting Sephiroth a look, he whispered, “Go on…I’ll wait.”

Nodding, Sephiroth slowly strode over to the gate and the waiting man, his nerves on fire from just how nervous he was. It was just a simple hug, but here he was, acting like a virgin about to get his cherry popped for the first time. He watched as Vincent’s arms dropped, which gave him the perfect opportunity to move forward and envelop his arms around the slightly shorter male. It was awkward at first, since Vincent stood there stiffly and unmoving at first, but eventually he wrapped his arms around the ex-General. It felt so good that he tightened the embrace considerably, as tight as he believed Vincent could take it. Looking at him, he was then reminded of that night in the tent when Angeal had come to him, had comforted him. He remembered how they had accidentally kissed and how unexpected, yet good that had felt. Eyes glancing down at pale lips, he couldn’t help wondering what it’d feel like to kiss Vincent. His thoughts melted away along with caution as he leaned closer and brushed his lips against Vincent’s in a gentle, chaste kiss.

Vincent froze when he felt the silky feeling of Sephiroth’s lips against his own; it was incredible how much a simple kiss was affecting him. Sephiroth's scent and his texture seem to sear into his skin and warm him from head to toe. Sephiroth leaned back, looking a little uncertain and heartbreakingly shy at him. Vincent answered him by slipping the fingers of his human hand into Sephiroth's soft hair to cradle his head and drew him forward into a heated kiss.

Sephiroth's heart skipped a beat and he made a noise halfway between a moan and a gasp and kissed the gunman back just as hungrily, desperate for affection and just from wanting Vincent. Sephiroth's lips parted under the demanding tongue of Vincent.

Vincent was a man lost as he held the object of his nightly dreams in his arms, the toned body of the too thin Sephiroth nestled against his own while he explored the sweet interior of his mouth. He felt so right in his arms, just perfect. Sephiroth kisses were almost frantic and Vincent drew him even tighter against him, his kisses were almost brutal and decidedly masculine as they ravished Sephiroth's lips.

Sephiroth thought his head would explode; he suddenly wished that Vincent would lie him down and take him right in the man's driveway, when he heard the sound of someone clearing their throat.

Both men turned to find a wildly blushing Zack standing there awkwardly dangling Sephiroth's luggage from his hands and squirming uncomfortably and trying to hide an erection, wishing he had worn his baggier pants instead of his rather tight worn jeans. "I'll just go put Sephiroth's bags in his room," he volunteered hurriedly and fled.

Vincent and Sephiroth looked at each other and then both broke into laughter. "I've missed you," Vincent said, still holding him.

"I've missed you, too." Sephiroth admitted, loathing to let go of him, but stepped back and released him. "Were you waiting here for me?" He asked him, tilting his head slightly.

Vincent thought about how he had been standing there since the early morning waiting for them when the dust stirred up by Zack's car would appear in the horizon. He had only left when needing to nourish himself and use the washroom. "Only for a few minutes," Vincent replied, putting a hand on his back as they walked into their house.

After they had said goodbye to Zack and Vincent had arranged to come see him at his office to privately speak about Sephiroth, the two settled in the living room before a roaring fire. They both knew there were things they needed to talk about, but Sephiroth immediately sat beside Vincent, the only light in the room being from the crackling fire.

Without asking, Sephiroth settled against the gunman with his head on his shoulder and Vincent put his arms around him and undid his braid and loosened it so he could run his fingers through the soft silver fall of it. Sephiroth sighed and looked up at Vincent, the soft light made him look younger and more vulnerable and Vincent leaned in to claim his lips with his own. His human hand soon slipped up his T-shirt to caress the other man's smooth side to explore the soft yet firm flesh of his torso and Sephiroth was soon shuddering with desire as he stimulated the flat discs of his nipples, raising the delicate points there.

Vincent's own shirt was swiftly unbuttoned and Sephiroth's hands explored his slimly muscular torso as well. Vincent's body was also smooth, but Sephiroth frowned slightly to find red scarring all over the expanse of his chest. Vincent seemed to hesitate at Sephiroth's pause but Sephiroth just leaned up and kissed him in acceptance. Their kisses were overwhelmingly heady and both were dizzy as they frantically kissed, both starving for affection and for each other.

Vincent kissed along Sephiroth's jawline to the smooth flesh of his neck and nipped the pulse point there. Sephiroth gasped at this and the action caused his head to loll back and his wedding ring to slide into view on its chain. Vincent suddenly focused on it and this caused him to freeze at what he was doing and to who: the lonely, grieving _widower_ and almost friendless man who trusted him. What sort of a beast was he? Vincent questioned himself as he looked at Sephiroth. Sephiroth's visage was flushed with arousal, his Mako glowing eyes shut. With that and his T-shirt half rucked up, he looked like the most erotic sight in the world. His eyes slid open and he frowned that Vincent had stopped and was looking strangely at him.

"Vincent, what's wrong?" He asked him. The green-eyed man frowned, not liking the mood change in the older man. The raven-haired man’s face was turned away, but he could still see the horrified, tragic expression there. What had he done to cause such a reaction? Had he gone too far somehow? Fearing he was at fault and wanting to comfort the slighter male, he reached over to touch his face when his wrist was snagged by Vincent’s claw. Confused, he didn’t even attempt to rip his arm away, which was probably wise since that claw looked like it could easily rend flesh. Feeling self-conscious and guilty, he peered at the ex-Turk through his long eyelashes. “Did…did I do something wrong?”

Vincent didn’t answer. Instead, he gently brought Sephiroth’s hand to his lips and tenderly kissed the palm of his hand. As if it explained everything, he confessed simply, “It is I who have done wrong, not you.”

“What are you talking about?” Asked Sephiroth, slightly annoyed with such a cryptic answer. He shivered a bit at the feel of those lips ghosting against his hand, which caused him to wonder what they’d feel like _elsewhere_. The younger man reeled in as much self-control as possible lest he throw Vincent on the ground and straddle him until he got what he wanted. Since he wasn’t that kind of person and because he respected the older man, he would talk this out even if his body burned for something physical. He had the sneaking suspicion that Vincent was similar to him when it came to talking about personal matters.

“The last thing I want to do…is to take advantage of you,” began Vincent, his sweltering eyes locked onto the wedding ring that dangled around the younger man’s neck. It almost taunted him in a way because it was a painful reminder that the man he currently felt consumed by now, had once loved another. Though the man was long dead, Vincent still felt a spike of jealousy at the thought of Angeal, and the special relationship he had once shared with Sephiroth. Unlike Sephiroth, Vincent had never experienced a healthy, successful relationship with anyone in his life. In his youth, he had dated a few people, both men and women, but it never lasted long because they either slept around or only wanted sex from him. He seemed to always be too into them than they were into him and it didn’t help that he’d always been socially awkward. So now that it seemed someone else might feel an inkling of what he felt, was difficult for him to digest, to accept. In his mind, Sephiroth was just a susceptible, mourning man that was unwittingly taking comfort in someone he saw merely as a substitute for the one he had loved.

Then there was Lucrecia, a woman he had loved so deeply, too deeply, yet never had held her heart. True, she had loved him in some way, he knew, but it had never been the love of a lover, a partner. The closest thing he had was the memory of a kiss initiated by him that she ended up turning away from. She had rejected him, claiming she loved her husband and that it hurt her just to look at Vincent because she felt his father’s death was her fault. He had never blamed her for the death of his father and sometimes, well, many times, he suspected her reason was just an excuse to let him down gently. That was laughable at best since rejection hurt no matter how ‘gentle’ someone was about it. Still, he had loved her regardless of the fact that she had never felt the same way about him that he had for her. Her death had been a hard blow for him to accept, to recover from and even now, he still blamed himself for it. In truth, he had believed he would never love anyone again until the moment he met Sephiroth, her son, in a **dream** of all places. Though he could see _some_ resemblance of Lucrecia in her son, he was not her and it was palpably obvious.

“You’re not taking advantage of me. I want this,” assured Sephiroth as he gestured between them with his left hand. He then noticed that Vincent was staring at something so he followed his gaze and realized it was the ring. Fingering it in his hand, he sighed. “Would it help if I took it off?”

Vincent slowly shook his head, mentally wanting to smack himself. “I would not ask that of you. You are still in mourning and obviously not healthy in mind and body. Besides…I am not Angeal, and never will be. I don’t want you to wake up one day regretting _this_ after realizing the face you’re seeing is no longer his.” To which he paused since he wasn’t used to having lengthy discussions with anyone. Sephiroth seemed to be one of those rare people that he actually rather enjoyed talking with, even for someone as quiet as Vincent. Gathering his thoughts, he then continued, “You shouldn’t have to feel obligated to stay, to become involved with me because I care about you. If all there can be is friendship, I will accept that. Understand when I say that you owe me nothing.”

“I know that. You’re Vincent and no one is like you. You…do remind me of Angeal in some ways, I will admit, but only in the way that like him, you care and see me for something more than what the world sees. When I look at you, I see you. Even in my dreams, I…” Trailed off Sephiroth, his already flushed face deepening in color.

“Your dreams? What do you mean?” Pressed Vincent in spite of the part of himself screaming at him to shut up and back off.

“Like goals, fantasies…things someone may want in their life. I used to see Angeal in my dreams, but now, I see you, and only you. I’m not saying these things have to happen, or will happen, but it’s what I envision nonetheless,” elucidated Sephiroth. He wasn’t trying to back the other man into a corner, or leash him, but if Vincent actually did feel something for him, he was willing, no, he was eager to explore it. Something may come out of it, or nothing, but if Angeal had taught him anything at all, it was that people should take chances if they wanted things to change, to happen. Sephiroth had been living in a muck of despair since his revival with the only bright spots being Vincent and Zack. Sitting around brooding in dark rooms or staring outside at life happening wasn’t going to heal him, wasn’t going to change a thing. If he didn’t get up and tackle life head on, he was going to spend the rest of his life a pitiful shell of a man.

Genuinely wanting to know, the ex-Turk asked, “What kind of dreams do you have?”

“If you really want to know then you’re going to have to pry it out of me, which won’t be easy. You’ll have to… _convince_ me somehow,” said Sephiroth, a sultry smile back on his fair face. At the moment he was reluctant to share his visions since he wasn’t certain they were things Vincent wanted, or would appreciate hearing about. He’d rather avoid ineptly delving into a subject as sensitive as his hopes for the future if he didn’t even know where the two of them stood now. For all he knew, this kind man only wanted a causal relationship, yet something told him Vincent wasn’t like Genesis in that regard.

“You’re not going to give up, are you?” Inquired an amused Vincent after realizing just how persistent and stubborn the younger man was, just like him, or well, how he had been in his youth.

At this, Sephiroth sobered up a bit. “Unless I’m wrong, I know you want me, but if you don’t, tell me now and I won’t bother you about this again. Nothing has to change.”

For Vincent, everything had changed. Just knowing that the younger male desired him, longed for him in what seemed like a similar way as he did, was enough for the ex-Turk to begin grasping at traces of something he had lost long ago: Hope. It had taken him some time to fully realize it, but he had fallen fast and hard for this beautiful man. The real question here was if he was willing to take another chance like he had long ago with Lucrecia, only to be rejected again. When it came to those he loved, reason seemed to fly right out the window and land somewhere in a broken heap. As he sat beside the younger man, he could feel his warmth rolling off of him and could still even feel the way his mouth and hands had felt. And damn, the way he had _tasted_ and how lost and ravenous Vincent felt because of him made the gunman only desire him more. Despite this, he knew now wasn’t the right time for it and that no matter what Sephiroth claimed, they did need to take it **slow** , day by day, until the time was right. It would give Sephiroth time to absorb it _and_ give him a chance to back out before he dove in too deep.

Like a man waiting to be executed, Sephiroth felt nervous as he sat there waiting for Vincent’s answer. This felt even worse than his days at his own trial sitting stiffly in his seat. Granted, most of the time he had been too dazed to really focus on anyone’s testimony, or anyone really. He had spent a majority of the trial trying to wrap his mind around the fact that Angeal was dead and had died shortly before the ex-General had gone insane. To think he had spent those years as a madman instead of a grieving man was almost worse than knowing he had taken many innocent lives. In spite of it all, there had been only one constant in his life at the time, and that was, and still was, Vincent Valentine.

Realizing that he was still cradling Sephiroth’s hand in his claw, he sheltered the top of it with his human hand. “I am willing to explore our relationship…as more than friends…on one condition: we take it slow and see where it goes from there. Does this sound reasonable to you?”

Sephiroth had had only one real romantic relationship in his lifetime and it had happened abruptly one night in his tent, unplanned by both men. Like Angeal, Vincent was willing to remain friends or much more, if that was what Sephiroth truly wanted. Taking it slow, though? He wasn’t sure if he even knew how, or what that truly entailed, but he was willing to try it anyway.  After all, he had learned through Angeal and some others that just because he didn’t know how to do something didn’t mean he couldn’t learn how.

“That sounds quite reasonable to me,” answered Sephiroth with a curt nod, his fingers curling between Vincent’s hands to grip and squeeze the golden claw. It was his non-verbal way of expressing that he would accept all of him, even the parts the gunman wasn’t so proud of.

Exhaling deeply in relief, Vincent was startled to find that he had been holding his breath while waiting for the younger man’s answer. Baited breath, indeed. If he wasn’t so exhausted, he might have laughed for a good bit at just how silly he was. Patting the top of Sephiroth’s hand, he slowly rose up, pulling the ex-Soldier up with him. “We can talk about this more tomorrow, if you wish, but now I think it’s a good idea if I go to bed. You can stay up if you want, of course, but this old man needs his rest.”

Feeling the murmurs of exhaustion setting in his own body, Sephiroth nodded slowly. Ten years ago, he would have easily been able to stay up all night even after strenuous exercise; however, his body was not at its full potential yet and would take time to build himself back to something similar to the way he had been before. “That’s fine, Vincent. Bed sounds good…”

Twenty minutes later, after a cold shower, to which he was getting sick of taking these days, Vincent dragged his tired, old bones from the bathroom in only a towel wrapped around his waist. He was surprised to see Sephiroth almost shyly sitting on the edge of his bed, dressed in an unbuttoned pajama top and loose pajama bottoms. His hands were cradled in his lap as he wrung them together as if nervous.

“Sephiroth…what are you doing?” Slowly asked Vincent, lingering awkwardly in the doorway of his room. His eyes trailed up from Sephiroth’s stomach to his chest, which caused him to curse quietly under his breath when he felt warmth flood his belly and nether regions. When he didn’t receive an answer, he entered the room to meet him at his bed. Ignoring the fact that his own embarrassing, scarred up body was on display, he leaned over and quickly buttoned up the younger man’s shirt like a mother trying to make her daughter look decent again. Once he was finished, he was surprised when Sephiroth readily handed him a folded set of pajamas from its resting place on his lap.

“Waiting for you, of course,” said the ex-General as if it were common knowledge.

“You don’t have to do that…” Sighed the raven-haired man who quickly slipped his pajama top on and buttoned it quickly while Sephiroth watched him with an amused smile playing on his lips. Next he slipped the pants on while keeping the towel strategically placed to keep his modesty covered since the younger male seemed intent on watching him. He normally preferred to wear some type of underwear, but was too tired to grab some and change elsewhere. After pulling away the covers, he sat down heavily on the side of the bed he usually slept on. Call him strange, but he always slept on one side instead of right in the middle like other people would when sleeping in big beds alone. The ex-Turk glanced up in surprise when he felt a body sitting down on the other side of the bed. “Sephiroth…”

“You said to take it slow. So…we’re taking it slow. Doesn’t mean I can’t sleep with you in your bed at night,” reasoned the silver-haired man as he crawled into the bed and landed heavily on his side. Propping his upper body up using his elbow, he watched Vincent through half-hooded eyes as he struggled to remain awake. “Thanks for the pillow and the blanket, but if you would be so kind, I’d much prefer the real thing…”

Vincent really couldn’t argue with that and found that he didn’t much want to. He was human…ish, after all, and craved contact just as much as the man in his bed did. Slipping into the bed, he didn’t even have a moment to flip the covers over them before Sephiroth had latched onto him, snaking his arms around him and burying his face in his neck under his chin. The ex-Turk laid there tensely at first mostly from the shock of actually having another person in his bed for the first time in many years. Eventually, he eased into the embrace, his arms winding around the somewhat larger body. Pulling him closer, if that were possible, he used his human hand to stroke up and down the younger man’s back in soothing, random patterns. It felt unbelievably good to hold him like this in the comfort of his own bed and he couldn’t help but think that he could get used to this _every_ night. Coming home to Sephiroth every time after work had always been a welcome sight, yet now he couldn’t help but think that having him like this, in his bed, was something even better to look forward to.

Even though Sephiroth had pretty much passed out within mere minutes, Vincent stubbornly fought his impulse to sleep for several minutes more out of desire to savor this precious moment. After being awake for nearly three days straight, his body wanted nothing more than to shut down and sleep for a week. Kissing the crown of the younger man’s head, he sank into the bed fully as he succumbed to sleep, finally at peace for the first time in a long time.


	3. Part III

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beware Yuffie Meddling, Sexy Sephiroth, and some Smut. Enjoy. <3

The next morning, after a rather restful sleep, Vincent awoke feeling years younger than he actually was. Something hard, smooth, and warm was pressed against the front of his body. Cracking an eye open, he realized that his face was buried in long, silver hair while his arms spooned the…very _naked_ younger man from behind. Lifting up the blanket, he noticed that Sephiroth’s pants had somehow managed to slip off and hang off the side of the bed whereas the shirt was completely M.I.A. He was distinctly aware of the erection tenting his own pants, partially due to morning wood and of course, the feeling and sight of a very nude Sephiroth. The gunman didn’t bother to do anything about it since he felt too damn comfortable to move. Sighing softly, he didn’t have the resolve to get up just yet, so he settled back into snoozing for the time being.

In his sleep, Sephiroth sometimes moved around, especially when he was cuddled up with someone or was having some type of stimulating dream, good or bad. This time was no different, which resulted in him squirming around quite a bit since his dream was of the mature variety. Moaning low in his sleep, he ground back fervently against the body swathed against him. In his dream, he was in front of the gate of the townhouse, on his hands and knees with his pants pulled down and tangled around his ankles. Vincent was angled right behind him, fully clothed while he gripped both hips as he fucked him with wild abandon, each thrust causing the younger man to rock back wantonly. The dream took a weird turn when Zack suddenly appeared with that petite woman Yuffie clinging to his back shrieking like a banshee as he held Sephiroth’s luggage in both hands. He stood there awkwardly watching them and repeatedly asking Sephiroth where he wanted him to put his things.

Groaning, Vincent latched onto a hip and ground his clothed groin against the firm swell of the other man’s ass that pushed back insistently as if begging for more. Half-asleep and aroused, it took him some time to fully realize that he was literally dry humping a naked man while he slept. Alarmed, he jerked himself away and tumbled off the bed in a tangle of sheets. Hissing, he pushed himself up and detangled himself from the blankets twisted around him. Standing up, he glared down accusingly at the perpetrator that was currently straining against the material of his sleep pants. He walked stiffly to the bathroom while growling under his breath. The gunman thought he could hear Chaos or some other demon cackling in his head mockingly, but ignored them. He’d learned at some point that if he didn’t take the bait, they’d revert back to their dormant states.

Once he entered the bathroom, he stepped into the shower and cranked the setting to as cold as possible. His hot flesh jerked at the startling slap of icy cold water that struck his body unpleasantly. He was half-tempted to turn the water on hot and just jerk off in the shower, but the thought of doing that just felt cheap and a little uncouth to him. Besides, he wanted to hold off until he could finally experience the pleasures of the flesh with the one that had snared his heart. With the way things were going, his plan to take it slow wouldn’t last very long. It was hard to abstain when he had such a tempting, naked man writhing around in his bed, moaning and grinding against him…

“Stop that,” growled Vincent when his half-hard manhood twitched in interest at the direction his thoughts had gone.

Sephiroth opened his eyes when his dream changed and looked up to find himself lying in the shade of a large tree while strong arms cradled him. "Are you awake, my love?" A voice asked him and he shifted his gaze to take in Angeal's face looking on as tenderly upon him as he used to in life.

"Angeal!" He cried, leaning up and throwing his arms around him and sobbed against him, greedily inhaling his familiar scent.

Gentle large hands pressed him back and stroked his bangs from his face. "You're finally moving on and I’m proud of you. You're changing and growing as a person, you're meeting new people and that is amazing," he said.

"But I miss you," Sephiroth said, clutching the ring he wore even in his dream. "What I have going on with Vincent…" he said biting his lip and feeling ashamed.

"Sephiroth, you will always love me in your heart, but there is more than enough room there to love another person. You need someone who can give you the future you desire. I'm dead. You need to tell him; you need to be able to say those three little words to him. It's time to." Angeal encouraged him.

"That I never said to you." Sephiroth stated, lowering his head in shame.

"Actually, you did. You once did during an orgasm," Angeal said with gentle amusement while Sephiroth could feel himself turn tomato red. "But I didn't need to hear them to know, you showed me every day by your actions, body language and certainly when we made love. You're insatiable, my dear."

"I never mourned you properly." Sephiroth said with hesitation in his voice.

"If it were just mourning me, I would leave you alone to get on with your life and not bother you. Sephiroth, I feel your mourning every day in the Lifestream, stop haunting me. You are starting to love again but have barely left enough of yourself in this world to love. It is guilt that takes your appetite and you are forcing yourself to mourn me to the point you are making yourself ill. Even someone as enhanced as you can become ill. You need to eat and take care of yourself, Vincent can see to that and you can train with Zack. Let them look after you." Angeal insisted in a voice that brooked no argument.

"So you have assigned my care to other people? Even beyond the grave you are fussing over my well-being?" Sephiroth said with shock in his voice.

"I want you well in your mind, body and soul. You need to heal; you need to stop punishing yourself. You need to trust people; you will find an ally against your enemies from an unlikely place. You will find love and have the future you desire." He said stroking his cheek and rubbing a tear away.

"On the farm?" Sephiroth asked him in a small voice.

"A farm was my dream for us, you need to find your own dream. Get that GED like I told you to, Soldier, and then follow your heart. You're brilliant, nothing can stop you." Angeal said.

"You're the only one who ever thought so," he said with tears rolling down his face.

"That is why you need to admit to Vincent what is in your heart and tell him your dreams so you can both build a future from them." Angeal said.

"Will I ever see you again?" Sephiroth asked him.

"I'm waiting for you in the Lifestream so we can be reborn together. We will both be different people and shall have to find each other again, but we are going to be together because the Goddess wills it. What a formidable woman and mother you're going to make," Angeal said making Sephiroth's eyes go wide at this.

"I miss you and I love you," Sephiroth cried and clung onto him.

"I love you too, but you have to back to Vincent because you belong with him now. Love him and trust him. He'll take good care of you and you shall have the children you desire" Angeal promised him, stroking his hair.

"But how?" He sobbed.

"Let's just say that your children shall technically be half brother and sister to Zack's own children." Angeal said.

"You're not suggesting that Zack..." He said with a frown.

"You'll see," he said mysteriously.  "Do not worry about Cloud, Tifa, Barret, and the others. Cloud and Tifa shall soon be ‘blessed’ with triplets that shall force them to move on with their lives with Barret as their proud Godfather. Now one more kiss and you have to go," he said covering Sephiroth's lips with his own.

"I don't want to leave you," he sobbed.

"I don't need you to share my coffin. You're not the lonely little boy living a shadowed existence in a lab and longing for love. You have that. My time spent with you was more precious to me than jewels but we shall have that at another time and place.  You're still alive and a bright future awaits you. I shall be waiting in this garden for you to join me when your own time comes," Angeal said with such a look of love. Sephiroth looked around and realized that they were in a beautiful garden and Genesis looked up from where he was reading Loveless and waved at him, looking young and arrogantly happy again.

Sephiroth sat up and started sobbing.

Vincent got out of the frigid shower trembling and wrapped his bathrobe around his slender form and then froze when he realized that he was listening to the sounds of Sephiroth weeping as if his heart would break. Normally in the past he had given him his space to grieve, but in view of their shifting relationship, he now knew Sephiroth needed affection as much as himself and went and pulled him into his arms and stroked soothing circles onto his bare back.

"What wrong, Seph?" Vincent asked him, not even realizing of the moniker he had used.

"I had a dream...it was…" he said in confusion, struggling to get his tears under control.

"It's okay, it was only a dream," Vincent said and Sephiroth leaned back from him, his green eyes flooded with tears. Even though Vincent's hair was matted to his head and tumbled down the back of his bathrobe in wet, messy tangles, he was still easily one of the most beautiful men Sephiroth had ever seen. "I love you," he said without thinking.

"I love you, too." Vincent said in a rush and both frantically kissed in sheer joy that was broken only by the sound of Sephiroth's stomach growling.

"I would love to kiss you all day long and shall, but I'm starving," he complained and Vincent actually giggled as he bundled a naked Sephiroth into another robe. They all but ran to the kitchen as they held hands, where Sephiroth proceeded to devour almost all the contents of their fridge to Vincent's sheer delight.

It was a silent Yuffie, like the ninja she was, who monitored the WRO dojo's coming and going afterhours. She was rewarded when two figures emerged from it, the large brunette had his buster sword draped over one shoulder and held his gym bag in the other hand as he talked to the slightly taller male. They were shaking hands when a car drew up and the owner got out and Yuffie's heart pounded in her chest that they wore a red cape. The distance was not so great that she couldn't make out the familiar figure of Vincent as he took the gym bag from the taller male and put it in his backseat. He got into the driver's seat with a wave goodbye to the stockier brunette, the taller man said something to the other brunette and with a flash of a long silver braid as it hit the lamplight, he got into the car beside Vincent and they drove off.

Yuffie walked forward as the other male stowed his own sword and gym bag in his vehicle.

"Zack Fair," she said. She had discreetly asked Cloud about names of Sephiroth's friends and researched them until she was left with only one survivor. The old picture of the bushy haired younger man matched up with the sleek young man before her with his wavy hair worn back in a ponytail. The years had added maturity to his face, but there was no mistaking those angular features, large blue Mako glowing eyes and the scar on his face. She felt like she was seeing him for the first time. How had it barely registered on her how he looked? He was handsome, almost pretty but completely masculine with wide shoulders and a powerful build. Even with his features set into a scowl to see her again, there was no marring his particular beauty.

She idly wondered why he had decided to grow his hair longer rather than retain his "lion cut" of his youth. She would have been told had she asked, it had grown into a lovely mess while he was in the coma. As soon as he was able to leave the hospital, Cynthia and he had gone to a barber and argued cuts, styles and lengths until the barber had put it back into a simple ponytail and both were shocked at how this enhanced his features. So he kept it that way and had his heavy locks clipped neatly to the base of his shoulder blades, it got impractical to deal with after this length.

"Oh, it's you again. You just missed Sephiroth if you were coming to attempt to end his life," he said with contempt in his voice.

"Why do you like him? He killed Aerith. How can you be so forgiving?" She asked him.

"That wasn't him. That was Jenova wearing his body like a cheap suit. Tell me, if a puppet master kills people using his puppet, do you execute the puppet? I think not. The Sephiroth that I know and you met are completely different from the insane flying asshole you knew. The real Sephiroth is rational, intelligent, loyal and rather dull because he lacks social graces. His sense of humor is very dry and his men who he commanded knew him to be tough, but fair. That is the real Sephiroth, not that you or any of your crew care. All of you felt it justified and celebrated when a man who was confused about where he was and even _who_ he was, was bundled into jail and put on trial for his very life. It was a good thing someone who experienced what he had and knew the whole story came to his aid." Zack spat at her.

"Vincent: he abandoned us soon after," Yuffie said.

"I don't want to be around _any_ of you and have to hear the poisonous lies you spread about an innocent man. He's my friend. I was a lab experiment, too, for only a fraction of the time that he was and surprised I didn't go mad, yet he survived that." Zack snarled at her.

"I want to know him." Yuffie said quietly.

"Pardon?" Zack said to her, slamming his car trunk and ready to drive away from her as fast as possible.

"I want to meet the real him. I didn't know how different he was until I spoke with him. Could you just ask him if he would be willing to meet with me if only for a few minutes? It can be at any location he would be comfortable in," she requested. "My PHS number."

"Why do you care?" He asked her.

"If he has changed, I want to judge for myself," she said and then seemed to blend into the shadows and disappear and he could only stare after her.

Sephiroth agreed to meet Yuffie over Vincent's objections at how he shouldn't subject himself to a "stalker" and a meeting was arranged at Zack's apartment. Zack sat firmly beside him when Yuffie walked in. Zack tensed, ready to toss her out on her petite butt if she even _looked_ at Sephiroth the wrong way. Instead she politely bowed to them both. "Sephiroth, I won't take up much of your time. I was wondering if you can tell me your story," she requested, taking a seat a respectful distance from him.

"I thought you knew it," he said, crinkling his snowy brows at this.

"Not from your point of view. I want to know it. Your friend said you are different now. I want to find that out for myself. I won't judge you and if you never wish to see me again, I shall never bother you from hereon in," she explained.

"Very well, I was a human experiment for most of my life, only I was rendered unable to qualify human for that because of what was added to me..." he explained and Zack listened to his horrific story and although he knew Sephiroth was holding back the worst of it, the kind hearted girl was soon sobbing. Zack could only watch in surprise as Sephiroth's dominate hand reached out and gave her own a slight squeeze. Zack received another from his right hand when he realized that tears were leaking from his own eyes in an undignified way. Soon, Sephiroth's voice tapered off indicating his story was at an end.

"How horrible…" Yuffie said with sorrow in her voice.

"There is nothing that can be done now, it's over. If only people could forgive...but I can't ask for that," he replied with a shrug.

"Well, I can. We all failed you Sephiroth," she said with such vehemence in her voice that it startled both males.

"You hardly did...especially after what I did to your home," he said.

"I meant "we" as a society should have known what was going on. None of this should have happened. People are stupid. I can't guarantee I can change any of my friends’ minds about you but I shall try," she promised him.

"You would do this for me?" He asked her, feeling touched.

"I would do this for you and Vincent. You are together?" She asked him.

"It is just a fledgling relationship, but yes," he said examining her, knowing how she had wanted Vincent.

"I guess Vincent told you about me. It’s been months since I've seen him, I've moved on," she declared.

"Were you serious about wanting to learn how to use a sword?" Sephiroth asked her.

"I would love to," she said.

"Well, aren't you lucky you have two of the finest swordsmen from SOLDIER to teach you how? If you wish to learn." Sephiroth offered.

"Can I learn on your sword?" Yuffie asked Sephiroth.

"No!" They both said as the same time. So Yuffie would join them for lessons and sparring afterhours in the dojo. Though she knew Sephiroth wasn't great socially, he was a good teacher. She quickly picked up the katas and sparred against Zack, Sephiroth being too afraid he would injure her at how enhanced he was.

Sephiroth couldn't help noticing the similarities in their personalities, they were both easily excitable and it seemed like they were both born without a filters on their mouths. Any stray thoughts in their brains would come right out.

There seemed to be an attraction going on, that they would linger to talk long after Vincent had come to pick him up. Their sparring sometimes took on a teasing quality that made Sephiroth feel rather uncomfortable, as if he were watching their foreplay.

Zack almost didn't know what to do when he offered Yuffie a ride home and she invited him in. He could no longer deny his attraction to her, she was a very skillful martial artist, but also was intelligent, loyal and funny. She reminded him of a younger Cynthia who had defied orders to rescue him; he could see that quality in her.

Cynthia, herself bugged him about his trying to find the next Mrs. Fair in a bar, there he normally met young women just who only wanted a conquest for the night. They were normally twenty-two or so and just starting out in life. Those that asked for his number normally wanted a further tumble in bed as the older man was a skilled and generous lover and they certainly appreciated his natural Goddess blessed endowment, but wanted nothing else to do with him because of his age. Women his own age could never take him seriously, thinking him touched in the head with his excitable ways or far too juvenile to consider a good catch and quickly moved on, leaving him lonely and his bed far too empty.

Yuffie didn't speak but just went into her bedroom and sat down on the bed, silently asking for what they both needed.

He looked at her while he stripped his shirt from himself, revealing to her his muscular torso with its pitted scarring on it from where Shinra tried to end his life with a hail of bullets. He self-consciously wondered if she found this gross.

His pants and underwear he pushed from himself, freeing his erection which bobbed before him and she seemed to glance nervously at it.

Finally, he removed his hair tie and the heavy mass of his blue-black hair tumbled down his broad back. He stood before her naked, allowing her to examine him, feeling a little shy before padding forward to join her. He couldn't know that with his battle scarred body, he was one of the most beautiful and yet endearing sights she had ever beheld as she held her arms out to him.

She wore nothing beneath her brief tank top and short shorts and proved to be a virgin as he used every trick in his considerable arsenal to prepare her. He offered to stop at his discovery of this and she simply said she had waited too long.  Her hymen easily parted from being rendered almost non-existent from her active lifestyle. There was only the slightest twinge of pain until they moved together easily as their bodies joined as one. She proved to be very vocal, but so was he as they kept her neighbors up until late.

Her last request before she drifted off to sleep in her new lover's arms was for it not be a one-night stand and he whispered back at the verge of sleep that he didn't believe in them.

A month later, Zack and Yuffie had moved in together, into Yuffie’s place of course, since she claimed his place was too cramped and not fit for the White Rose of Wutai. He didn’t particularly care where they lived since he was a pretty flexible guy and was excited to be living with someone again. Their relationship had gotten pretty serious in the month they’d dated and while there might not be wedding bells in their foreseeable future yet, moving in together as a couple seemed the next best step to take.  Zack had invited Vincent and Sephiroth to their new house for a housewarming party and had managed to convince both men to help him lug his stuff over to his new residence.

After the last piece of furniture and box had been carried into the house, Yuffie had invited everyone to sit down and relax in the living room. While their friends relaxed on the couch together, Yuffie dragged Zack into the kitchen to help her get drinks when she noticed the distance between the two men. Though she wasn’t an expert on love and sex, she could still feel the sexual tension hanging between those two hot men. Shutting the kitchen door quickly, she grabbed her boyfriend and dragged him over to the fridge. As she rooted through the fridge for a few different drinks, she asked, “Do you think they **did** _it_ yet?”

Zack shrugged while he held a tray out with four glasses stacked on it. “Maybe. With the hot and heavy way they were going at it that first time I dropped Seph off at their house, I’d be surprised if they haven’t hit the sheets yet.”

The petite woman’s ears perked at that. “You gotta tell me more about _that_ later on. For now, though, we gotta figure out a way to get those idiots to tango in the buff.”

“What makes you think they’re not doing it already?”

“Zack, _hellllooo_ , there’s like a wall between them out there. Vinny looks like he’s going to punch the next person out he sees and Sephy doesn’t look like he’s faring much better. Not to mention when we spar with Sephiroth, we barely make it out of there alive. It’s obvious they’re both sexually frustrated out there. I should know, I’ve been wanting to hit that since…” Trailed off Yuffie when she noticed the sour look on her boyfriend’s face. Laughing nervously, she shook her head as she flailed her arms around dramatically. “I _used_ to want to be with Vinny, but not anymore. Though…if you weren’t with me, I’d be totally sandwiched between both of them, _damn_. At least, I’d want to be, but I have you, so stop being stupid and get with the program already!”

“I guess I can see that. They’re both hot…even though Vincent is…kinda creepy,” said Zack with a bit of a shiver. Even though he had learned over time that Vincent was a kind man, he still felt spooked by him at times, especially when he snuck up on him. Not that Vincent meant to, but his steps were unusually quiet or maybe Zack just sucked at paying attention to his surroundings. Sighing, he set the tray down on the kitchen counter before leaning against said counter. “All right…what do you propose we do then?”

The dark-haired female tapped her finger against her chin a few times as if in deep though. “You talk to Vin and I’ll talk to Seph. Don’t be too obvious. Just ask…how their love life is going…”

The blue-eyed ex-Soldier pouted. He imagined trying to talk to Vincent about sex with Sephiroth then saw his own lifeless corpse being tossed in some swamp for beasts to devour. He shuddered at the thought. “Why can’t I talk to Sephiroth?”

“Knowing Vinny, he won’t talk to either of us, but if I talk to Sephy, he might talk…especially if I start _screeching_ ,” pointed out Yuffie. She knew both men hated it when she raised her voice and she knew since Sephiroth’s senses were enhanced, he despised her being loud the most out of everyone. That and Sephiroth seemed to have taken a particular liking to her enough for the untouchable man to let her hang off his arm. She had seen and enjoyed the envious looks shot at her by women passing by.

Zack sighed and his shoulders sagged, which meant he had caved into her demands, as usual. “Fine, you have a point. Make it quick, though. I prefer keeping my blood _inside_ my body, you know.”

“The sooner we get them banging, the sooner I can drag your ass to bed,” promised Yuffie with a wink while she gave him the thumbs up. Although they had done it a good number of times since that first fateful night, Zack was always drooling for more, like an eager dog hungry for more cat food.

Half an hour later, Zack was hanging out with Vincent in the living room with the television on watching some program that no one was really paying attention to. Yuffie had somehow managed to drag the ex-General into the kitchen under the pretense that he was going to help her with ‘snacks’.  As soon as she had him in the kitchen, the proud and high-strung woman cornered him. Pointing at him, the Wutaian girl demanded, “What’s the deal with you and Vinny?”

Sephiroth stared at her warily as if she were planning something downright malicious. Crossing his muscular arms over his well-toned chest, he said, “There is no deal. We’re fine.”

Eyeing him up and down, she couldn’t help noticing that the man looked much healthier and was pretty much back to his former self sans the insanity. All that sparring, sleeping, and eating regularly had worked out well in his favor. He was a stunning specimen of man if she ever saw one and part of her regretted that she could never have him… _or_ Vincent. Remembering what she was here for, she crossed her arms, too, and snorted. “If everything is fine, how come your neck isn’t mottled with love bites?”

“Perhaps those love bites are elsewhere,” suggested Sephiroth with a little smirk.

Yuffie dared, “Prove it. Strip naked.”

“I’m not undressing for you now or ever,” snorted Sephiroth while he eyed her warily as if she were a poisonous spider dead set on biting him. “Why do you care?”

“Because you’re both my friends and well, I kind of like Zack,” started Yuffie and when Sephiroth raised an eyebrow, she amended, “Okay, okay, I love him. Shut up! Anyway, like I was saying, it’ll be hard to marry a dead man. You know, with the way you’ve been sparring…you’re kind of…well, you need to get laid already and don’t you deny it.”

“I agree,” admitted Sephiroth, which resulted in him surprising the short woman.

“Then what’s the problem? Is there…something wrong with the _equipment_? Are you not ready or what?” Proved Yuffie, eyes growing big as she leaned closer to the tall man.

“As far as I know, everything works. It’s Vincent…he, well, he wants to take it slow. Doesn’t think I’m ready for it. He knows I love him, but…every time I try, he bolts like a scared deer. Maybe he just doesn’t want me, love me in _that_ way,” confessed Sephiroth, who was surprised at himself for confiding in Yuffie. He liked her well enough, but never thought he’d see the day when they were in a kitchen talking about his sex life, or lack thereof.

Yuffie burst out in laughter so loud it was impossible for the other men in the house to not hear that even over the roar of the television. She held up her hand to silence Sephiroth just in case the irritated man thought she was laughing at him. In truth, she was laughing at the situation both of her hard-headed friends were unwittingly tangled in. “Earlier when you guys were lifting and carrying Zack’s useless things, I saw Vin staring at your ass and your legs like it was the most succulent meat on the planet! It wasn’t a glance, it was…trust me, he wants you. Bad. If that hard on he was sporting isn’t proof, then I don’t know what is.”

“You were watching him watch me…and you stared at his crotch,” deadpanned Sephiroth.

Yuffie sighed in exasperation as she wildly threw up her arms. “That’s not the point! Listen, the point here is the man **wants** _you_. Taking it slow sounds more like it’s to your benefit, not his, since he thinks you’re not ready. Prove to him that you are and he’ll eat you up.”

“Fair enough. What should I do then?” Asked the ex-General as he dropped his arms to his sides.

“Have you tried seducing him?”

Sephiroth’s brows drew together as if he was trying to figure something out. Staring blankly at the younger girl, he shrugged. “I’m not sure I understand what you mean by that.”

“You know, wear something nice, smell nice…flirt a little…don’t come on too strong. Be subtle, but drive him crazy…make him chase you. The less blood in the head, the less brain function he has, so turn him on,” Yuffie advised.

Sephiroth blinked slowly.

The dark-haired girl sighed loudly again. “Look, Vincent is a man…and you’re a man…just do what you men respond best to. You both may be superhuman or whatever, but in the end you’re both still men with needs. He chases after you like a nanny taking care of all your needs, right? Make him see that you _need_ him.”

The next day, Vincent left their home to run a few errands under the impression that Sephiroth would be spending the day out with Zack and Yuffie. Instead, the ex-General stayed in their house prepping everything for when the older man returned. When it grew dark outside, he lit several candles throughout the house to illuminate it while keeping all the lamps and other light fixtures shut off. Dinner was already prepared and set on the table in warmers with plates and silverware set. When he was satisfied with how everything looked, he took a long, hot shower and cleaned every part of himself thoroughly. After the shower, he slipped on a black silk robe ( _a present given to him by Zack and Yuffie_ ) and blow dried his hair. Glancing at himself in the mirror, he adjusted the robe so that more cleavage was revealed, but not too much. Enough to tease and draw attention to his well-formed chest. In the past, his uniform had revealed a similar amount and had distracted some people enough for it to be an advantage for him on and off the battlefield. A glimmer of metal caught his eye and he noticed his necklace. Cradling it in his hand, he sighed before he slowly pulled the chain over his head and set it inside a jewelry box. Although it bothered him not to wear it, he knew if Vincent saw it, it would ruin everything again and he wasn’t about to let that happen.

When he was finished, he waited in the living room on the couch, one of his legs bent. This caused a split in his robe, revealing a good portion of his hairless muscular thigh and leg. The candlelight flickered, causing light and shadow to dance across his flesh. Soft music played in the background while he read from a book to keep himself occupied. He already knew what time Vincent would be home since when it came to errands, he was always home the same time every time. When it came to the WRO missions, that was another thing entirely.

Around eight in the evening, like clockwork, Vincent strode into the house and was surprised to find Sephiroth home lounging in the living room. He’d been under the impression that Zack would have dropped him off later since both men liked to stay up late. What stumped him further was the lack of artificial light. The room was…lit by several _candles_. Enough to illuminate, but not enough for normal people to read books in. It seemed cozy and romantic, like something Vincent had always wanted to do. It took him a moment to realize Sephiroth was wearing something new, something that clung to his fit body in all the right places. It looked like silk and made the younger man’s skin stand out more. He wanted nothing more than to slide the silk down over Sephiroth’s broad shoulders until the robe dropped off his body. Swallowing thickly, his eyes raked up the length of Sephiroth’s long, creamy leg until he realized glowing Mako green eyes were watching him closely. Averting his gaze and coughing to try to play it off, he said, “I didn’t think you’d be home this soon. Everything…all right?”

“I decided to stay in and wait for you. Everything is fine,” assured Sephiroth as he marked and closed his book before setting it gingerly on the coffee table. He subtly bent his leg more, causing more of his tantalizing flesh to be revealed. He cheered inwardly when crimson eyes distractedly glanced back at the smooth expanse of his leg. When the ex-Turk remained silent, he gently asked, “Everything all right with you? You seem… _distracted_ …”

Snapping out of his daze, Vincent looked sharply at Sephiroth. “What?”

“Nothing. I made dinner, come on,” said Sephiroth with a small chuckle. Rising gracefully to his feet, he stretched his arms before he slowly walked by the frozen gunman. As he walked by, he brushed a hand lightly against Vincent’s thigh before disappearing into the dining room. He had enough time to plate the warm, divinely smelling food before Vincent walked stiffly into the dining room. Sitting down gingerly, he scrutinized the younger man as if he were trying to figure some puzzle out.

“What…is that you’re wearing?” Vincent inquired slowly, his eyes drawn to the way the candlelight danced against Sephiroth’s very male chest. If a big busted woman showing cleavage walked by now, she wouldn’t be able to tear his eyes away from him.

“Oh this? Our friends gave it to me yesterday. It feels… _nice_. Feels almost like I’m wearing nothing. Since my sleeping naked bothers you, this might solve both our problems,” Sephiroth said nonchalantly as he began eating and nearly grinned when he noticed the way garnet eyes flickered between his mouth and his chest.

“Your sleeping naked doesn’t bother me,” hastily said Vincent, who then realized he had spoken a bit too quickly. Pale face flushing, he looked away and fought to control himself. His skin suddenly felt too hot, too tight and itched to be released from the confines of his clothes. His neglected cock twitched in his pants, obviously reacting to the stimulating sight of the beautiful silver-haired man. Though his pants weren’t that tight, an erection would still be noticeable to Sephiroth, even in the dim light. He’d have to calm himself down and focus on their dinner and the light conversation that it normally entailed. The aroma of the food smelled good, but he found it was the last thing he hungered for at the moment.

“Want me to take it off then?” Coyly inquired Sephiroth, resting his chin in the palm of his hand. It felt strange to act this way and he wasn’t certain he was even doing it right, but Vincent seemed to be responding to it nonetheless. So he’d push forward with the plan until it got him the results that he wanted. If they had to have sex on top of the food, he would do it to finally have the man he loved and lusted for.

Vincent seriously considered stripping him naked himself, but remembered himself and his promise. With how sexually frustrated he was, this romantic little dinner and atmosphere wasn’t helping in keeping his already diminishing self-control in check. In a strained voice, he answered a little too quickly, “No, no, that’s fine. You’re fine like that.”

“Glad you approve,” purred Sephiroth with a smile before taking another bite of juicy meat. Raising an eyebrow, he feigned ignorance as he asked, “What’s the matter? Are you not hungry?”

“I’m famished,” lied Vincent, who had to look away when he saw Sephiroth’s tongue slowly lick away some stray juice from his bottom lip. He forced himself to pick up a fork and began gradually eating even though his appetite had waned considerably. The food was delicious, as always, and he could easily tell that the younger man had spent a great deal of time on this and on everything else. Vincent wasn’t a fool; he could tell that Sephiroth was up to something especially since Sephiroth acting so… _sexy_ on purpose was new to him. To the gunman, the ex-General was already an alluring, sensual man whether he meant to be or not. It was all the little things he did or said that drove Vincent crazy and he could tell those things just came naturally to him. It was amazing that being the mature, older man that he was, he often felt like a trembling, shy little schoolboy in the presence of someone like Sephiroth. Sometimes he didn’t want to touch him because he was afraid if he did, Sephiroth would prove to be a mirage and vanish, leaving Vincent alone.

As they ate, Sephiroth tried to remember the next step to the plan. What had Yuffie said? Oh yeah, something about…talking? But what? Oh, Vincent’s day. He felt kind of stupid right now because this wasn’t him really, but if it worked, he’d do it. Yuffie had assured him that it would work, yet he wasn’t certain of it. In the back of his head, he could see Yuffie grinning like a maniac while Zack was giving him the thumbs up signal. “How…was your day? See anything interesting?”

Vincent paused before he took a sip of his red wine and stared at the silver-haired man curiously. While it wasn’t rare that they conversed about their day, Sephiroth normally didn’t make small talk of any kind. He usually allowed the gunman to lead the conversation since he preferred to listen or answer direct questions. This was also something Vincent had had to get used to since he wasn’t a big talker himself and normally preferred silence. Leaning back in his chair, he regarded Sephiroth through lowered lashes. “Yeah, I’m looking at it right now...”

 _To hell with Yuffie’s plan_ , Sephiroth thought. He wasn’t a woman, nor was he a particularly patient man as it were. He was tired of waiting to get what he wanted from this man. Though her plan was eliciting some response from Vincent, it wasn’t fast enough nor as effective as he would have liked. He’d finish this his way and he’d do it now before the ex-Turk could scamper away. With this in mind, he smoothly rose up from his seat and stalked around the table until he had reached Vincent. Using his hand to drag the older man’s chair from out from under the table, he next swiftly straddled him, causing his silk robe to hike up a bit. Before he could object, Sephiroth dove down to crush his mouth against pale lips. His hands quickly worked open the several layers of Vincent’s clothes until he could slide them against the warm flesh of his scarred chest. He groaned in delight when he felt those pale lips respond to him, kissing him back hard and deep as both tongue and teeth forced his mouth open. Vincent’s claw clasped the back of the other man’s skull while his human hand raked down a tapered back until it settled on gripping one of his fleshy, firm globes in hand.

Vincent broke the kiss, panting harshly as he peered up at the unbelievably sexy man with the swollen lips and glazed eyes. He couldn’t remember why he’d denied him so many times before. It took him a moment to realize something was missing from the younger man’s neck, his ring. Angeal’s ring, as he’d always thought of it as. Suddenly stilling, he used both hands to keep the writhing man still as he stared up at him beseechingly. The love he harbored for this man was staggering, so much so that he’d always forfeit his own desire just to keep him well and unharmed. “Sephiroth…”

“If we go any slower…I will _freeze_ ,” explained Sephiroth as he kissed feverishly along Vincent’s neck and jaw. He ground his hips against him, his desire evident as it rubbed against a toned, pale stomach. It was increasingly hard to think when that fantastic ass was gyrating so slowly, too slowly, against his thickening manhood. His arousal spiked when he heard Sephiroth’s heated words whispered against his ear, hot breath tickling him, “I want you, Vincent, I love you…I will say whatever you want me to say…”

Like pressure against the cracks in a dam, Vincent’s will power burst completely. His mouth kissed, sucked, and bit any flesh he could reach while his hands blazed a trail all over his body, over silk and under it to tease the smooth, hard flesh. “Naked under here, huh…” Commented Vincent after his human hand had burned a trail up his thigh before it slipped underneath the robe to grope and squeeze a bare cheek appreciatively. The ex-Turk’s claw hand slipped underneath to grasp the other cheek, albeit far more gently lest he accidentally slice open flesh.

“Yes and it feels divine rubbing against my skin…like the way I want you right _now_ ,” confessed the ex-General, head lolling a bit to the side at the feel of tongue and teeth against his neck. The cool, hard touch of the metal against his ass was strangely welcome and caused him to shiver at the peril of it since it could easily rend his supple, yet strong flesh.

Leaning forward a bit, Vincent used a bat-like wing to knock everything off from the table in a single sweep, everything crashing to the ground. The sound would have caused Sephiroth to wince had he not been in such a stimulated state. “As you wish…”

“You’re going to clean that up… _after_ you’re done fucking me,” ordered Sephiroth, chuckling a bit though he was dead serious. He hissed when his back was slammed against the table and then legs seized and yanked until he was nearly hanging off the table. His silk robe was then pushed up and bunched up over his navel, exposing his bare genitals for Vincent’s viewing pleasure. Part of the robe had fallen off one shoulder and had loosened somewhat, exposing a good deal of his right shoulder and breast.

“After I’m done fucking you here…on this table…I’m taking you to my bed to make love to you,” promised Vincent while he reached between them to press and prod a couple of fingers against Sephiroth’s entrance. As much as he’d love spending an undetermined amount of time tasting, touching, and teasing every part of him, that’d have to settle for another time when they both weren’t starving for release.  Frowning, he realized they were missing something vital until movement snagged his attention to notice the tube of lubricant that the younger man has procured out of his robe. Lying back down, he spread his legs and bent them just right so the gunman had just the right amount of access. He groaned when he felt slick fingers rubbing against his orifice before pressing in, shallow at first until deeper. It wasn’t long until he was a wanton, rocking mess shoving back against the fingers working him open. Growling in his impatience, long legs ensnared the crimson-eyed man, forcing him closer. Just as eager and impatient, Vincent hastily unzipped and tugged his large, enflamed erection out until every inch was exposed. He quickly slicked himself up and then aligned himself before pressing against the loosened hole, rocking a little until the head had pushed past the right ring of muscle with the rest of the turgid organ following soon after.

Both men groaned in unison when they were finally joined as one; Vincent from the tight, velvet heat that gripped him and Sephiroth from the incredible fullness that was almost too much for him to bear. Vincent might be shorter and leaner than Angeal had been when it came to body size; however, Sephiroth had to admit, the gunman had an exceptionally big dick. In the back of his mind, he called his mother an idiot for not wanting _this_. Screw her, and screw Hojo, they were dead and Vincent was here and all his, so it didn’t matter.

The jade-eyed man threw his head back and cried out, his body jerking when Vincent began pounding into him, proving that his lean swimmer’s build held much more power than most would suspect. Gripping the silver-haired man underneath his knees with both hands, Vincent altered the angle so that he could slam more easily into Sephiroth’s clenching ass. It was so tight, so damn tight and good that he had to think vile thoughts just to stave off from coming too soon. The ex-Turk was determined to see to Sephiroth’s pleasure first before succumbing to his own. With the way things were going, that would be really soon indeed.

“ _Yesss_ …” Hissed Sephiroth, his body bucking back as much as he could against the large cock that seemed to split him wide open with every deep, almost savage thrust into his abused passage. His dick slapped against his belly with the rocking of their movements, the head smearing copious amounts of his pearly fluid against his stomach. Breath ragged and eyes tearing from the pleasure, each and every worry and woe was lost to him, rapturously fucked right out of his mind.

The raven-haired man panted harshly, grunting with each quick, yet deep thrust into that heavenly body. He unhooked his right hand from Sephiroth’s leg to snake down and wrap around the large, neglected manhood that leaked profusely in its excitement. It jerked at his unexpected touch, causing Sephiroth to keen at the double stimulation of the hand pumping his dick while his ass was mercilessly rammed into. Sephiroth’s words were a garbled string of demands followed by breathless declarations of love that only served to incite Vincent’s desire and efforts to please him further. Sephiroth threw his head back, drunk on pleasure as his lover's human hand urged him towards his completion. The fact that it was Vincent's hand that so forcefully stroked him made him moan out all the more wantonly as Vincent's cock plundered his depths while his hands stroked him in the same rhythm, owning him completely. His hips climbed in time with the seductive movement and with a final wail, he shot white hot pearly ropes onto his stomach and robe. At the same time, Vincent threw back his head and howled, just managing to trap Chaos back into his cage while he shot load after load of pent up cum into the hot receptacle of Sephiroth's lithely built body. He panted and looked down to where the love of his life lay and hazy Mako green eyes met hazy red. "We should have done this much sooner," he commented and this just made Sephiroth laugh in a drunken sounding sort of way.

"That’s what I was trying to tell you," he said back after Vincent leaned forward to capture his lips and managed to snag a napkin to clean him up.

"Looks like we'll have to get your new gift dry cleaned," Vincent commented as he helped him up.

"I don't think I need it anymore." Sephiroth said as Vincent wrapped an arm around him to draw him towards their bedroom and sat on their bed.

"Sorry, but I quite like it and intend to have you wear it a lot. Clothes are not an option for you to wear at the moment. Is that alright with you, soldier?" Vincent said as he authoritatively stripped the soiled garment from him and pushed him back.

"Sir, yes sir. Any further orders?" He asked him facetiously.

"We make love and then we'll talk." Vincent said and captured the younger man's lips to his absolute delight.

Later, they lay entangled in the sheets both sporting bad bedheads. "Tell me these dreams you have for our future," Vincent insisted while trying to take the tangles from Sephiroth's hair by combing his fingers through it.

"Angeal and I had dreams about us owning a farm, but I suppose you don't want to hear about him in view of the circumstances. But I have to tell you the whole story because my dreams stemmed from his," Sephiroth explained.

"Angeal was someone you loved and his memory should be honored. I don't expect you to omit mentioning him. Please start at the beginning," Vincent requested.  He listened as Sephiroth told him of the hopeless dream that the two had shared and felt heartsick for the dead soldier. His dreams were something that any other human being took for granted: freedom, the right to be with the one you love unencumbered, starting a family, and living a simple life with them. Vincent really identified with the sort of man Angeal had been: kind, loyal, and decent.

"I couldn't see myself in bib overalls anymore then you in them. A farm is not for me. Perhaps we can put in a garden? The place could use some sprucing up. As for you getting your GED and applying to medical schools or universities to offer you a career of your choice, I heartily approve of that idea. But you know it means going out in public," Vincent cautioned him.

"I have to rejoin society eventually; I don't want to be hidden like I was before. If I keep on hiding, everyone will just keep on thinking I'm some sort of freak that needs to be hidden. I'm not. I have friends now, I'm building a life and I have you. It has been ten years; people start to forget things. If I go to school, people will either have to accept me or not. I shall come home to you at the end of the day because I want to," Sephiroth explained to him.

"I have no trouble with you going into society, but I would like you to take a part of me with you that is a lot less embarrassing then a pillow. If you would. I think you need another ring but one you wear on your finger," Vincent said. "Would you accept this from me during a ceremony where you would be legally recognized as my spouse in the eyes of the law?" He asked him.

"Yes, of course!" Sephiroth cried.

"I guess we have to think about venues, what to wear and dates. Everything will get even larger once Yuffie gets involved," Vincent teased him.

"I want to get married this weekend on a beach in Costa Del Sol," Sephiroth said decisively. "I want just you and I there and Yuffie and Zack, and Cynthia and Paul if they can make it. I want it under the shade of a tree, perhaps beside a waterfall?"

"It seems you are in a rush to rob me of my bachelorhood. I need to make a phone call," Vincent said and reached for his PHS. Sephiroth was intrigued when he asked to speak to Rufus Shinra.

"Vincent," Rufus greeted him when he came on the video conference.

"Hello Rufus, I would like to clear my schedule for the next two weeks and please also clear the schedules of Yuffie Kisaragi and Zachary Fair." Vincent all but ordered him.

"And why am I to do this? You all are important people and I need you for missions." Rufus asked him.

"I'm getting married this weekend in Costa Del Sol and would like to spend my honeymoon there with my new spouse and with them as my guests, along with another couple," Vincent said, shooting a look of amusement at Sephiroth. "If you refuse this request, I would like to remind you of the unique talents I bring to WRO and that I am wealthy, as my family was and don't really need to work."

Rufus seemed to pause at this. "My congratulations on your pending nuptials. Who is the lucky lady?" Rufus asked him stiffly.

"Man." Vincent corrected him and angled the phone so that he could see Sephiroth beside him and put his arm around him. Rufus seemed to blush at how disheveled both were and _naked_ and quickly deduced what they had been up to. “I believe you know my fiancé, Sephiroth? I would send you an invitation but only friends are invited, so I'm afraid you don't qualify. We aren't registering anywhere, so no gifts are required," Vincent said to the frozen looking Rufus and hung up and both men broke into laughter. "I guess we have to go ring shopping,” he commented.

"Later, I have to call Zack and Yuffie," Sephiroth said taking the phone from him and quickly explained about the plans to Zack. He was assured both would be happy to attend and act in any role they were assigned. All three men winced as Yuffie squealed in delight to the one beside her… and the two on the other end of the line.

Zack could tell that Yuffie's conversation with the other members of AVALANCHE did not go well at how uncharacteristically quiet she was when she got home.  "Hey there, how was your day? I made lasagna with garlic bread for dinner," he said prattling on a mile a minute to try and distract her from her negative thoughts.

She silenced Zack by touching him on one of his shoulder blades and he looked at her questioningly, his handsome face stern in his concern for her. This touched her, Zack seemed to be the eternal little boy to most people, but he was deeply loyal to the people he cared about and had a heart of gold. She tried to imagine what would happen to them if people hated him the way they did Vincent's choice of spouse. Yet in her heart she knew she would chose Zack. "It didn't go well. Vincent tried to explain to them that Sephiroth had changed and I backed him up, but in the end, all they did was protest and yell until Vincent literally told them to go fuck themselves and stormed out of there. No one would listen to me, I offered to arrange a meeting with Sephiroth and them but they refused. They won't accept it," she said as tears ran down her face.

He pulled her onto his lap and held his petite girlfriend "They won't listen because they refuse to believe that people can change. They are living in the past and isolate themselves from everyone else in their devotion to take down Sephiroth, only he isn't their enemy anymore. They will have to accept that eventually. Society will have to accept Sephiroth as an intelligent, rational being or as Vincent said, they can go fuck themselves," he promised her.

"You always know what to say to make me feel better," she said, drying her tears.

"It's like I'm in love with you or something," he said giving her a boyish grin.

"I was wondering when you wanted to start a family," she said with a blush to her cheeks.

"I haven't even asked you for your hand in marriage yet, I think we can wait a bit. After all, your father would have me executed if we eloped, you being royalty and all. I’m certain your people would rather have a Wutaian like Tseng," he said imitating the man's emotionless expression so well that she cracked up.

"I told you that you wouldn't be the emperor, but the royal consort because you're not royalty," she explained.

"I'm sure they won't want to see my pasty white ass being even that much," he complained.

"I happen to love your pasty white ass. I don't mean that we should be in a rush to marry, so much red tape, yeesh. I just want to give Vincent and Sephiroth a wedding gift and it involves you..." she said and explained.

"I think that is a very noble idea and support you in your decision but it can't happen the natural way, science has to be involved," he cautioned her.

"I only sleep with you," she promised him.

"Glad to hear, now let's have dinner. I thought we could use your fancy plates," he said, going to set the table.

"Sorry, that is rare Wutaian porcelain and only royalty can eat off of it," she said.

"Let's get this common man a common plate then," he said, going to remove one.

"No, leave it, you're my prince," she said fondly to him and this made him smile back.


	4. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last installment to the Dreams of Beyond Series. Thank you for reading and we hope you have enjoyed this series.

It was a beautiful day in Costa Del Sol and the tropical breezes stirred the flowers on the wedding arch set beside a waterfall that three couples stood before. The petite and pregnant redhead and her husband held hands as the two males were joined in matrimony.

There was no aisle for them to walk up or anyone taking the traditional walk the female of the couple usually did or bridesmaids. Both males stood side by side before the officiate as he read the script that united them. They both wore matching light weigh black shirts and grey slacks and were barefoot. Zack wore black slacks and a blue Hawaiian shirt with a floral pattern on it, that matched Yuffie's sarong and she wore a flower tucked behind her ear as they acted as ring bearers to the couple.

It was a simple wedding, yet beautiful in how both men beamed as they repeated their vows and placed simple platinum bands on each other's ring fingers.

Vincent looked almost shy when it came time to kiss, but Sephiroth dipped him over his arm and soundly kissed him while he blushed and everyone cheered.

They held hands as they walked towards the hotel that was providing their wedding feast. "Vincent, Sephiroth. Zack and I have something to suggest, please see it as being a wedding gift. I know you would like to have children. I would like to offer myself as your surrogate mother, that is if you will accept me," Yuffie shyly said.

"I've already agreed to this," Zack offered. "We're going to wait to marry anyway. There's a lot of protocol to marry into her culture, a ridiculous amount in fact. She's only 24, after all. So if you want to knock her up, feel free." Zack offered.

Vincent looked at Sephiroth and Sephiroth looked at Vincent. "You don't expect us to sleep with you? We're planning on using artificial insemination," Sephiroth suspiciously said.

"Come on, I promised my woman she would have a good time getting pregnant!" Zack chided.

"I must insist on sleeping with you both...and right now," Yuffie said and undid her sarong and both males blushed when it flowed from her body to reveal...a bathing suit and the couple cracked up.

"Man, you should have seen the look on your faces!" Zack said as he picked up her sarong and handed it back to her and she arranged it back on her body.

"Sorry boys; I'm taken," she said giving them a kiss on each glowing cheek. "Artificial insemination it will have to be," she declared, striding away to take her boyfriend's arm.

"They never even waited for our answer," Sephiroth complained.

"I say we go for it, that young woman is going to be formidable when she comes into her prime," Vincent said.

"But our children will be so _loud_ if they take after her," Sephiroth complained.

"We'll just have to teach them that silence is golden and buy some earplugs," Vincent said with a chuckle as he took his new spouse's hand, enjoying this simple pleasure as they walked along the golden sand with their friends in tow as they began a new chapter of their lives.

The newly wedded couple spent the majority of their honeymoon locked up in their suite or on the beach late at night either having sex or enjoying other intimate moments spent in solitude together. There was a surprisingly lack of people around this time of year and no one dared intrude on them unless specifically asked. It felt great and was like a perfect dream; however, both men knew it was drawing to an end soon since both of them would have to get back to the real world soon. But not quite yet.

Vincent held onto narrow hips, helping the larger male to rise up only to slam back down on the length that impaled him. It was a marvelous contrast to feel the cold, wet sand on his back while he felt the heat of his spouse’s body. The dark sky hung above them, speckled with many flickering, glittering stars and a big luminous moon which cast an ethereal glow over them. Due to the lack of light pollution, the moon and stars were distinctly visible against the midnight, nearly cloudless sky.

“Want me to take it _slow_?” Mocked a smirking Sephiroth after he had slowed down quite a bit to tease the man underneath him. In response, he felt the hand and claw both gripping his hips hard enough to bruise, but not enough to break skin. His hips stuttered a bit when he felt a claw snake perilously around his neglected dick, squeezing hard enough to warn him. He knew the ex-Turk would never dare hurt him, but it still thrilled him when the older man threatened him in some way.

Being on the verge of release, Vincent was none too pleased by his lover slowing down and teasing him. Voice husky from arousal, he growled, “Unless you want your face _buried_ in sand while I fuck you, you better move that damn sexy body of yours…”

Sephiroth said nothing, just smiled down at him before leaning over him to kiss him hotly on the lips while his hands raked against his pale, somewhat heaving, sweat-slickened chest. Feeling the intense desire to reach completion, he pulled away and leaned back to resume riding his husband for all that he was worth and then some. Using mostly the strength of his strong legs, he nearly effortlessly rose up and down, fast and hard, yet ever mindful of not accidentally hurting the man he loved. Not to mention he rather enjoyed sex with Vincent and didn’t want to put the man out of commission for any length of time. The last thing he needed was to break that wonderful, big dick of his. It had taken him some time to figure it out, but Sephiroth had realized he had a bit of a size kink.

Far from passive despite his current position, Vincent used his claw to drag over glistening, smooth fair flesh and somehow managed not to cut him when he rolled a metal talon over an erect, rosy nipple. The gunman also used his human hand as a makeshift sheathe to stroke and pump the younger male’s cock in time with every thrust into his clenching, hot cavity. He could feel the demons pulsing with energy beneath his skin though most of them lay dormant save Chaos, who was always eager to escape. The things that particular demon would do to Sephiroth, Vincent would never allow in this lifetime or the next.

All too soon, both men reached their peaks at undetermined times and rode out the pure ecstasy until Sephiroth had collapsed on top of Vincent in a boneless heap of aching limbs. The water chose that precise moment to crash over them, shocking their relaxed, panting bodies with cold water. Vincent cursed loudly in surprise while Sephiroth laughed in muffled mirth, his face buried in the older man’s neck.

“Well…that takes care of _cleanup_ , at least,” commented the silver-haired man, who was not the least bit willing to remove his heavier body from his place on top of the slighter male. Fortunately for him, Vincent didn’t seem to mind his weight in the slightest. He merely hummed in response while he idly stroked the other man’s back with his human hand until the ex-General dismounted from his body. The raven-haired man watched with half-hooded eyes as his spouse dived into the sea, his pale, well-formed body disappearing under the dark depths only to emerge moments later. He watched him swim around for several minutes until the rhythmic, placid movements of the somewhat wavy water and his lover swimming caused him to doze off for a light nap.

What seemed like only mere minutes, but was at least a half hour in reality, passed until Sephiroth collapsed on the sand beside the sleeping man. Although he was drained of most of his energy thanks to their several rounds of sex and his laps of swimming, he didn’t quite feel like sleeping just yet. Glancing over at the pale gunman, he smirked a little as he rolled over onto his side. He crawled a hand across the ex-Turk’s chest and down over his abdomen only to have it grabbed by Vincent’s claw. Chuckling, he easily ripped his arm out of his loose hold and pressed against him, throwing a leg over the older man’s legs and an arm around his stomach. Laying his head down on Vincent’s chest, he listened to the steady, calming sound of his heartbeat beating within his chest.

“I never told you this, but…when Angeal was still alive, sometime before he and Genesis left me…I had a dream about you,” murmured Sephiroth, his eyes half-open and unseeing as he remembered that particular dream. As hazy as the dream was, he could still clearly remember how Vincent looked and the feeling he had from the dream. He recalled how real it had felt, as if he had been there in person.

Vincent opened one eyelid to peek at him somewhat curiously. “Oh?”

“The dream seemed so real, like I was there in person. Something was guiding me, telling me where to go…in some big, strange mansion I’d never been to before in my life. Ironic thing is it’s the same place later on that I found Hojo’s notebooks…the same place I heard _Her_ voice…and **snapped** ,” continued Sephiroth, frowning slightly. He despised thinking about the day he had went insane, but he didn’t mind thinking about this particular dream. He didn’t realize how tense he was until he felt fingers threading through his soaked, slightly tangled hair. This caused him to relax more and curl tighter against the smaller body. Sighing, he continued, “You were in a room full of coffins with decomposing, mutilated bodies…and _something_ , the same thing that had been directing me along, told me to open your coffin. I ripped the lid off…since your coffin was locked, for some reason…and…”

Vincent opened both of his eyes before he slowly tilted his head so that he was staring down at the head nestled against his chest. He gingerly propped himself up a bit using his elbows. “You found me sleeping. By the look on your face, you thought me to be dead, I assumed. You asked me who I was, and I redirected the question back to you. You told me your name, and then I told you mine. Then…you asked me why I was down there in a coffin. I asked you how you could not know, but then you disappeared. When I heard you tell me your name, I knew you were Lucrecia’s son…and I was surprised that you didn’t know anything about the experiments performed down there, but then again, I should not have been surprised. Hojo was a liar, after all…”

Sephiroth quickly lifted his head to look at Vincent, moving and positioning his arm just right so that his sharp chin was digging into his own arm and not into his lover’s flesh. “You…had the _same_ dream? How can that be?”

“I don’t think it was a dream,” stated the raven-haired man.

“Then what was it?”

“I don’t know the answer to that, but I do believe that in a sense, you were there. Maybe not in body, but in soul since…I was awake when you disappeared. I had to fix the coffin lid you _ripped_ off, after all,” explained the ex-Turk, smirking a little bit before sobering up. “When I woke up next, it was by Cloud and his company. I remembered you at that time and even thought to check my coffin before we departed. Signs of the damage you did to it was still there…”

Sephiroth shivered a bit since the idea that he had somehow traveled out of body freaked him out just a little bit. Then again, such an idea wasn’t as frightening as him going insane or Jenova using his image to murder people. Laying his head back down on Vincent’s chest, he sighed deeply.

“Is that why you trusted me, Sephiroth?”

“… _yes_ ,” admitted Sephiroth, blushing faintly. Looking away at nothing in particular, he continued, “I thought it was silly…but the _feeling_ I had before, in that dream, or whatever it really was…still existed within me when I met you again. I didn’t know you, not really, and had no real reason to trust you, but I did. I didn’t know why you wanted to help me, but I appreciated it…although that’s not why I decided to trust you. That feeling, my instinct, I suppose it was, was what caused me to take your hand.” Then a certain thought crossed his head, which made Sephiroth lift his head and stare at Vincent suspiciously, his eyes narrowed. “Why did you help me? Was it because of my mother?”

“Not entirely, no,” said the gunman, staring up at the twinkling stars, unshed tears brimming in his eyes, which he quickly blinked away. “I tried to help you before you were born…which you already know all about, but what you don’t know is…I could have done _more_ , but instead, I did **nothing**. I stayed in that dark place, reliving nightmares as my punishment, my atonement. I thought I was repenting for my sin…but all I was doing was nothing, absolutely fucking nothing. I regret being such a goddamn fool and if I could, I would go back and change things, but I can’t. Truthfully…I helped you for several reasons, not just because of your mother or my guilt. That feeling you talked about…I felt it, too, still do.”

“I suppose that makes us a couple of fools,” chuckled Sephiroth as he embraced the shorter man. Any other person might have felt some sort of grudge towards Vincent and Lucrecia, and would have been justified in it; however, Sephiroth couldn’t find it in himself to be angry or bitter anymore. What was done was done. The dead were dead though they would always be remembered, and that was it. He could brood in the darkness over their horrible pasts, of the things they did or didn’t do, or he could move on with his life and finally be happy. The silver-haired man was happy and would hold onto that for as long as physically possible. Nothing else mattered now.

“I suppose it does,” agreed the ex-Turk with a quiet, drawn out sigh that sounded immensely relieved. Several minutes, or hours, neither knew or cared, passed until Vincent broke the comfortable silence again. There was a certain excitement brimming just under his surface, but he wouldn’t let it out, not yet. He had been hiding something for awhile now and could barely keep himself from spilling the beans. In a way, Zack and Yuffie had rubbed off on him a tiny bit, too. The gunman found it increasingly hard these days to keep anything from his spouse, even a surprise. He would never dare admit to such things, of course and neither would Sephiroth.

“Unfortunately for us both, we have to get back to the real world soon,” started Vincent, who smiled a bit when he heard Sephiroth’s displeased groan. “But before we go back, there’s somewhere I intend to take you…”

The next day, during the late afternoon, Vincent and Sephiroth arrived at Angeal’s cemetery in Banora. The ex-Soldier was confused when he recognized the graveyard and looked to the ex-Turk for explanation. Vincent said nothing, just slipped his human hand in his lover’s and led him towards Angeal’s grave.

When they had reached the grave, Sephiroth was blown away by the sight of it. An enclosure made out of dark metal, which looked like some type of titanium, surrounded the graves of Angeal and his parents, as if protecting them from the outside world yet still allowing people to view it and the sun to sneak in. Bright vines with flowers grew snaking around the bars, which gave the enclosure a warmer, more lively look. Inside was a small garden of beautiful flowers growing tastefully around the graves. There was such beauty and vitality here that one could almost forget that the deceased were buried several feet beneath the swaying flowers and grass.

“There’s two keys, one for you and one for the gravedigger who has agreed to tend to the garden,” said Vincent as he fished out the key from his pocket and placed it gingerly in Sephiroth’s hand. He turned to leave, but the green-eyed man wouldn’t release him. His bright eyes implored Vincent to stay with him, which the gunman understood and nodded in acceptance.

Sephiroth slipped the key into the lock, turned it and opened the gate to the enclosure. Leading Vincent along, they both stepped carefully into enclosure, ever mindful of the flowers growing within it. Crouching down on his knees in front of Angeal’s headstone, his eyes watered uncontrollably as he took in the breathtaking detail carved into the stone.

Just above the obviously newly engraved inscription, was Angeal’s wedding ring, the same exact one Sephiroth had ordered weeks before everything had…ended. The stone had been engraved to fit two rings in snugly and something else emanated from the ring, as if it were protected by a spell. Reaching into his pocket, Sephiroth pulled out the chain with his wedding ring and stared down at it. Ever since they had finally consummated their relationship, Sephiroth had not worn it since. Removing the ring from the chain, he placed it in the empty slot and marveled at the way the ring shone brightly, like fire, before it was sealed in place and protected like the other ring. It felt…complete now, to have both rings together on the headstone of the first person he had ever loved so deeply and unconditionally. Wiping away the water from his eyes so that he could see better, his eyes lowered to the inscription carved below:

_Beloved of Sephiroth Crescent & Honorable Friend to All_

But what stunned Sephiroth most of all was the picture of a smiling Angeal etched into the stone underneath the inscription. It was so lifelike and accurate it made the silver-haired man’s knees buckle from the weight of emotion he was smacked with. Thankfully Vincent held onto him, his strength more than enough to support the larger male from stumbling.

“Vincent,” breathed Sephiroth, not sure what to say since he was so overcome with emotion and furiously wiping away unwanted, yet welcome tears.

“I thought you should have this, to remember him by when you can’t visit,” said Vincent as he procured a large picture frame of Angeal smiling that typical smile of his that Sephiroth had loved so much, along with a packet of various other photos. He carefully handed the frame and packet of photographs over to his spouse.

“It wasn’t easy to procure photographs of Angeal, but I managed somehow. I just thought…you wouldn’t want to forget his face. It’s been…many years since I’ve seen your mother’s face, and I’ve already forgotten what she looks like. All I can remember now is how she made me feel and that she was a beautiful woman with a kind heart. I didn’t want you…to forget him. Our memories fade, but the feelings always linger,” explained the raven-haired man as he watched Sephiroth flipping gingerly through the photographs of Angeal, Genesis, and even some with the three of them together. It tugged at his heartstrings to see his husband so overcome with emotion and he couldn’t help thinking that if Cloud and the rest could see them now, they would no longer think so ill of the man he loved.

Setting the frame and packet of photographs down, Sephiroth pulled Vincent into a tight embrace. He buried his wet face in the other man’s neck and couldn’t help inhaling his smell, his very alive, comforting scent. “I don’t know what to say,” admitted Sephiroth, his words muffled and choked.

“You don’t have to say anything,” Vincent said gently as he stroked the length of the other man’s back. He didn’t seem to mind the wetness against his neck or the fact that the one he loved was quietly sobbing.

“Shouldn’t it read Sephiroth Crescent _Valentine_?” Inquired the ex-General with a slightly coy look after they had gazed at Angeal’s grave for an undetermined amount of time in silence. Luckily for the taller man, he had recovered enough so that he could see without blurry eyes and talk without a strained, obstructed voice.

Vincent shook his head and explained, “We weren’t married when this was constructed. It would have been…presumptuous of me. I would have taken you here regardless of our relationship. I…waited to take you here because I wanted the flowers to be fully grown.”

“I don’t have the words to describe just how wonderful you are,” said Sephiroth with a sigh as he held Vincent’s hand in his own. He liked the fact that their hands were pretty much the same size and length. In a lot of ways, the ex-Turk wasn’t so different from him and proved to be quite compatible.

Vincent smiled at him and like always, it blew the younger man away since the gunman wasn’t a man that smiled often. “Then don’t. Just **show** me… _later_ on.”

“I fully intend to,” promised Sephiroth with a wink. “Let’s go home.”

As the couple began to walk away hand in hand, Sephiroth stopped when a warm, intense feeling seared through his chest and tingled pleasantly against his skin, like someone was touching him. Glancing over his shoulder, he thought he saw the familiar form of Angeal, beaming brightly at him and looking very proud and happy. In that moment, Sephiroth felt such peace and closure imbue him to the point that he no longer doubted Angeal, Vincent, or himself. He knew now that he could love Vincent for the rest of his life without feeling guilty and without compromising his love for Angeal.

 

“ _Daaad_! C-can I see m-mom after school?” Asked an impatient eight-year-old girl with bright, malachite eyes and short, cropped dark hair, the longest parts being the lengthy fringe that reached past her chin. Though she was short and petite, she resembled Sephiroth a great deal more and more as she developed. She stood in her school uniform and her bag was ready near the front door while she eagerly waited for breakfast. It would seem she had inherited a bit of Yuffie’s excitable personality and love for food. Fortunately for both men, their daughter shared more traits with her biological father, Sephiroth. She was an exceptionally bright girl for her age, brimming full of intelligence although she had a speech problem that caused her to mispronounce words and stutter when she spoke too fast. It was something she was sensitive about and often got angry about it even though her three parents frequently reminded her that she was smart and would and could work past such an issue. The girl was very hard-headed like Sephiroth and finicky when it came to doing things the right way, just like Sephiroth. After she had been born, she had been more than a handful and both men had agreed to wait several years before having Yuffie carry another child for them.

“Ask your father, Tillie,” sighed Vincent as he briskly worked in the kitchen, finishing up breakfast for his family of four, including himself. He glanced at the giggling eighteen-month-old boy when he heard a crash and sighed again when he realized the toddler had smacked his food off of his table. 

“Ask me what?” Questioned a distracted Sephiroth as he strode into the kitchen, his white doctor’s coat slung over his right arm. He paused when he noticed the mess on the floor, which caused him to stare suspiciously at the grinning baby. “Little brat…”

The baby boy, Grimoire, usually called Grim or Grimmy, giggled at this as he slapped his drink off the table, too. His crimson eyes crinkled in mirth as he stared at Sephiroth as if this was the funniest thing in the world. This boy resembled Vincent quite a bit since he was his biological father and only time would tell how much of Yuffie had indeed tainted the boy. Giggling continuously, the cute baby exclaimed, “Dada _funny_!”

Their daughter, called Tilla, yet often went by the nickname Tillie, bounded over to her father and clung to his free arm. Tugging on it, she begged, “Can I _please_ see mom after school?”

Shaking the girl off of him gently, he grabbed some paper rolls and proceeded to clean up the mess somehow managing not to sully his clothes in the process. Raising a silver eyebrow, Sephiroth looked up at his daughter and asked, “Did you ask your dad?”

“You know she always asks me _first_ ,” reminded Vincent as he turned off the stove and served everyone a healthy portion of rice, bacon, and eggs.

“It’s fine with me as long as you’re fine with it,” yawned the amused ex-General as he threw away the soiled paper towels. He pecked Vincent affectionately on the lips after being handed a mug of steaming hot coffee.

Vincent sighed. “I’m fine with it…but I’ll call Yuffie first. She may be too busy to entertain children since she is pregnant and having to put up with that husband of hers…”

Leaning close to Vincent, Sephiroth trailed a few kisses from his jaw to his ear before whispering, “ _If the children are with their mother today then I’ll come home for lunch…and you can **eat** whatever you want…”_

Pupils dilated, Vincent snaked an arm around his spouse’s waist before pulling him flush against his own body. Temporarily forgetting he had an audience, he crushed his lips against Sephiroth’s while his human hand slid down over his mate’s still impressive backside, giving it a firm, suggestive squeeze. Due to their demanding children, exhaustion, and Sephiroth being a doctor, it had been quite awhile since they had had sex last. It was getting to the point that both men wanted to send the kids off to Yuffie just so they could have a week together blissfully _alone_.

“Ew! No grown-up stuff!” Loudly complained Tilla before she began ravenously eating her breakfast while warily eying her lovey dovey parents.

Grimoire clapped his hands before reaching for his fathers, his little hands grabbing at the air. “Kiss kiss!”

Chuckling a bit, Sephiroth picked up Grimoire and kissed him all over his chubby face to the toddler’s delight. “I might have to leave daddy for you…”

Amused, Vincent muttered, “Doubt it…he’s not _big_ enough for you…”

“Dada funny!” Cried the giggling boy while he reached out and grabbed some of Sephiroth’s bangs before yanking it _hard_. Sephiroth had learned early on to keep his hair braided or tied back. Still, there wasn’t much he could do about his fringe except allow it to grow out, to which he was hesitant to do and he wasn’t willing to slick that back or use barrettes. Gritting his teeth, the silver-haired man carefully attempted to pry his poor hair from his son’s iron-like hands. Just a toddler and the boy was already incredibly strong. He sighed in relief when Vincent swept down to his rescue by tickling the boy’s belly until he released his hair.

“ _Shit_ , I’m running late! I have to go! You two brats be good and don’t give daddy a hard time or _else_ ,” said Sephiroth after glancing at his watch. Taking another sip of coffee, he kissed each kid on the head before turning back to face Vincent. Kissing him again, he said, “Don’t let them torment you too much. That’s my job, remember.”

“Bad word!” Gasped the toddler while his sister giggled from her spot sitting at the table, her plate now sadly empty. Her green eyes glanced to her father’s plate, eyeing it like a starving dog especially since the food was basically untouched.

“I meant what I said. I’m coming home for lunch to you,” promised Sephiroth, his lips curled just the right amount to look sultry.

Vincent smiled back, but waved him off. “I look forward to it. Now go Doctor someone before I’m tempted to relive our first time with you on the _table_ …”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading, the kudos, and/or for commenting. It's much appreciated and we're both glad you enjoyed. If you liked our co-op, as I call it, then look out for future projects. We've been working on another one, but that one is mostly comedy with a dab of angst and of course, nice amounts of man loving. ;)


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